Twenty Twenty
by Ranunculus
Summary: "Roy, meet Rachel." Roy stared at the attractive, smart young woman before him… and decided he didn't like her one bit. AU
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Teen Titans

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"_Roy, meet Rachel." Roy stared at the attractive, smart young woman before him… and decided he didn't like her one bit._

**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter One_

Roy Harper knew life wasn't easy, that it was hard and mean and would bite you if you weren't careful. He knew pain and he knew pleasure, and he also knew how alike the two could be.

Roy tried not to tie himself down, to be elusive and mysterious like the shadows in the night, that was his ideal, how he had planned to live his life.

But… as Roy soon learned, life doesn't always go according to plan. He got into trouble, did bad things, and was abandoned by his mentor. If Dinah hadn't been there for him, who knows what he might've become.

Eventually, Roy decided to move on. He was hired to go undercover, to infiltrate Cheshire's layer and worm his way into her trust.

Cheshire was a beautiful woman, his kind of woman. So when the offer came, he said,

"Why not?"

But it was a trap. He figured he would get in, learn her secrets, and get out. He had not planned on falling in love with the villainess.

And as each day passed, he realized more and more how much danger he was putting himself in, how much it would cost _her_ in the end.

So, in spite of just how much he loved Cheshire… he left.

A few years later he was called on again, by Nightwing, the former Robin of his childhood team of superheroes. And it was to stop the woman he had loved.

Speedy was just a tad reluctant, but it had to be done. It was his foolishness that made him get captured.

...Or perhaps he secretly wanted to.

Either way, that was when he learned of his child, the one Cheshire bore him. Lian.

Cheshire disappeared shortly after Nightwing busted in and freed him.

Nightwing reprimanded him, telling him he had been an idiot.

Speedy told Nightwing that he had a daughter, Cheshire was her mother.

Nightwing didn't say anything else.

Roy was in shock to have a child, this was not part of his life plan, having a child could ruin everything.

But as he looked down at the baby girl in his arms as she slept peacefully, he had a feeling that it might not be so bad. Then she opened her eyes and smiled sleepily at him…

Then she began to scream.

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**Author's Note: **I apologize for the first chapter. It may not seem very good, I admit, I'm not particularly fond of it. But this is as good as it's gonna get. I've tried so many ways of getting this out, in words, but it would not go willingly.

I think, the reason for this is, is because I never read the actual comics in which this scenario happened. I learned a lot of this information by doing research on websites and whatnot. So, it's probably not completely accurate, or accurate at all, for that matter.

I had no idea how to introduce Lian, since I didn't know how it happened. I never read anything about Cheshire taking her with her when she captured Speedy. So I assumed that was how it happened, despite how very little sense it makes. She told Lian to go to sleep, so she did, then she took her into the room that Speedy was being held and then told him the whole story and left. Then he had to take the sleeping Lian home with him, but when the little girl woke up, she didn't recognize where on earth she was, or who this stranger was carrying her. She, of course, screamed as all small children tend to do when feeling uneasy. I say she's about two, since that's the whole age when they turn into little monsters. In my opinion, anyway...

By the way! Dinah is Black Canary. If you didn't know. Yeah, so she's just sort of Speedy's mother figure, I guess… I apologize if there was any confusion.

Twenty Twenty is the name of a song by Wavorly, it's got nothing to do with the story really. It's just the song that was playing when I got the story for this idea.

_Thank you so much for reading._


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer_:_** I do not own Teen Titans

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_**Twenty Twenty**_

_Chapter Two_

"No!" She had been saying that all day. No matter what he would ask her, her answer would still be the same. No.

"Lian, please. Would you like chicken nuggets, or a grilled cheese sandwich?"

"No!" Roy sighed, wanting to give up. He ran a hand through his crimson hair and rolled his tired green eyes skyward.

"She'll have the chicken." He answered the waitress who gave him a sympathetic smile before scurrying off.

Good thing it was one of their slow days. Only Roy, Lian, an elderly couple who appeared to be asleep, and a couple of hooligans who were probably still in grade school were in the small homey restaurant.

He stirred his coffee thoughtlessly while staring at the child before him.

There was no doubt she was his. Her hair was a bright orange-red color that curled up at the ends of her pigtails. She glared at him with his very own eyes, her nose wrinkled in a very childlike manner.

She crossed her arms and kicked her high chair, snorting out air in a defiant manner. Well, as defiant as a two-year-old could get while strapped down.

"Hey." Roy looked up to see Dick Grayson, he frowned lightly. He was late. Roy wasn't the one to call for this meeting.

Dick smiled apologetically and made some excuse about not being able to find his keys.

Since when did Richard Grayson misplace his keys?

"Good morning, Lian. How are you?" Richard sat down across from Roy and spoke to Lian who in return growled "no" and stuck her tongue out. Richard chuckled. "Cute kid."

"Adorable. Now what did you want?" Dick blatantly ignored him as the waitress appeared to take his order and bring him his drink, mindlessly flirting all the while. Roy glared at him.

A minute or two later, Richard finally turned his attention to Roy and cleared his throat.

"Well, I noticed that you're still having trouble with Lian." Lian blew a raspberry at him and continued to glare at the table. "Yes, and, ah… well, I want to introduce you to a friend of mine." Roy rolled his eyes.

"Oh, do you now?" Richard nodded curtly before sipping quietly at his drink. "Dick, I don't need any sort of child psychologist." Lian let out a sudden wail and threw a fork on the floor. "I need an exorcist." Dick sighed and shook his head smiling.

"She's not really any kind of _certified_ psychologist… but she's good with children. She's got a knack for it. Let me introduce you." Roy continued to glare.

"No!" Lian spoke for him, and Richard looked at her curiously for a moment.

"Does she say anything else?" Roy sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"It's not like I would know…" The two men continued to watch the youngster as she glared at the table. Lian suddenly reached for the crayons in started scribbling wildly on her placemat.

"She's frustrated." Richard noted quietly as Lian whined, still scribbling away at the paper.

"Isn't everyone." Roy sighed. Of course the child was frustrated. She spent her whole life with her mother, and now, she suddenly without her and has to deal with this strange man who claims to be her father? Lian wasn't even sure what a father was.

"She misses her mother." Dick muttered, not noticing Roy flinch.

"I know…" Roy sighed. He absently watched as silent tears flowed down Lian's bubbly cheeks, snot starting to run down the pout of her lips and dribble on her chin.

"This friend of yours…" Dick smiled a little.

"She's not bad at all, really. She's great with kids, trust me. She'll have you and Lian on speaking terms in no time." Said toddler chucked a green crayon at the side of Richard's face. Both men sighed.

What did he have to lose?

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**Author's Note:** Okay, so, I updated pretty fast, obviously, but the reason for this is because I'm kinda new to all of this, so I'm kind of just practicing, and I already had this chapter done. I probably won't update this fast anymore, unless I have the story/chapter done and I just feel like putting it up. So... just warning you. This was sort of a test run... As wierd as that sounds...

Anyways...

Wow. These chapters are like… surprisingly short. It's not normally like me. It feels strange. The last chapter was like, 500 words or something…? Oh well!

So yeah, Raven's coming up next. She's not really her usual self, honestly. Don't expect her to be all broody and whatnot. She's still the same old Raven everyone knows and loves! She's just a little more gentle than before, that's all. At least towards Lian…

And hopefully I'll have more to write about to make my chapters longer, eh?

Wow… it feels so strange to write such a short chapter. It's like, I just started and already I'm wrapping it up. How odd…

_Thanks again for reading._


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Teen Titans

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**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Three_

Lunch with Dick was a bit refreshing, seeing as Lian was more quiet with food in her mouth. Until she started throwing it at Roy, that is…

He had learned about Richard's friend… Not that he had told him much about her… just that she was good with kids and would get Lian to behave.

"_Trust me." _he had said. Roy scoffed while preparing for bed. It was late, one in the morning, he had just gotten back from an uneventful patrol and was tired.

Roy hung up his Arsenal costume in his closet and placed his equipment in the safe.

Lian had gone to sleep early, probably exhausted from all of her tantrum throwing.

Roy lay in bed silently, watching the ceiling, staring at the darkness as it swirled about the room noiselessly. He sighed.

"_I leave her in your care…"_

Roy screwed his eyes shut. He didn't want to think about that. Not now. No, now he needed to sleep. He would be meeting Dick's friend tomorrow, and he needed to be prepared.

With a final sigh, Roy shut his eyes and fell into a dreamless slumber.

The next morning…

_Tweet Tweet_

_Chirp Whistle_

Roy groaned as he opened his eyes. He turned fitfully, placing his pillow over his head in hopes to drown out the sparrows outside his window… his open window.

Roy sat up. Had he opened his window last night? A dark look passed the man's features as he jumped out of bed, now listening closely to hear even the slightest noises.

Walking stealthily through his apartment, he heard the television on, some child cartoon probably playing. He heard someone in the kitchen, cooking?

Roy inhaled the scent of French toast, syrup, eggs and bacon. His mouth watered suddenly.

He crept less suspiciously into his kitchen and found Dinah cooking breakfast while Lian lay on the floor singing along with the Backyardigans.

"'Bout time you woke up!" Dinah smiled sweetly at him as she served the food onto the three plates set on the table. "Coffee." she nodded her head toward the counter where there was a pot, fresh. He poured himself a cup as Lian crawled into her chair with some help from Dinah.

"What are you doing here?" Dinah didn't answer him as she poured Lian orange juice.

"Mm?" She asked, finally turning to him.

"What are you doing here?" Dinah rolled her eyes and shook her head, a grin plastered strangely on her lips.

"Do I look like the kind of person that would let a child starve?" She sat at the table next to Lian, picked up a strip of the crispy bacon and started waving it around while talking. "I had a feeling you'd be up late. And you should know that children don't exactly like to stay in their own beds once the sun's up."

Roy hummed thoughtlessly as he eyeballed the eggs cautiously. "I wasn't aware you could cook…" Dinah snorted.

"Of course I can cook. Most people can, even if it's just the basic necessities, it's still cooking." Roy shrugged. It was true. While he was no master chef in the kitchen, he knew how to not burn corn flakes.

They sat in silence for a moment, each eating their own meals when Roy noticed Lian. She was wearing… a bunny costume?

"Where did you find that?" He asked Dinah suddenly. She looked at him innocently.

"What?" Roy pointed at the silent Lian who watched Dinah curiously. Said woman fought hard not to smirk, but in the end she failed miserably. "What? Don't you think she looks cute?"

"She can't go outside wearing that." Lian turned to him abruptly and narrowed her little green eyes.

"Why not?"

Lian screamed, "No!" Roy sighed.

"What do you mean, why not? Look at her. She needs real clothes." Dinah shrugged. Lian hissed which earned her an odd look from the man and a strange smile from the woman.

"I used to wear things like that all the time when I was little. My mother never said anything about it."

"What about your father?"

Dinah shrugged. "That's not the point."

"It _is_ the point. _I'm_ her father." Lian screeched.

"NO!" she reached for something, anything, and found her small cup. She chucked it at Roy. It hit him square in the nose, orange juice spilling out on his face and shirt.

The cup clattered to the floor and for the first few moments, all that could be heard were the somewhat distant sounds of Uniqua singing about _something_. It didn't really matter, nobody was listening.

"She's got quite the arm, no?" Dinah stated seriously. Lian glared at him, waiting for a response, perhaps?

How does one react to such an action?

"Indeed." Roy muttered. Lian snorted and munched on a piece of her French toast.

Today was going to be a long day.

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**Author's Note: **Well. Another short chapter… Sigh… sorry for the lack of Raven in this chapter.

But now I have nowhere else to go… so… I guess that's good news. We will have to meet Raven in the next chapter fosho.

Fo. Sho.

Thanks so much for reading.

And for putting up with my short chapters.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Teen Titans

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**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Four_

"Lian, please stop." Roy begged the two-year-old. She blew a raspberry and continued pulling on her dress uncomfortably, whining the whole time.

Dinah had helped redress her after the whole bunny outfit fiasco. She seemed to like Dinah, if only she would behave that well with Roy, then he wouldn't have to go see this _friend_ of Dick's today.

"Lian!"

"Nooo!" People turned and stared at the pair, parents silently judging and children grinning. How uncomfortable.

"Come on! We're almost there." He finally picked up Lian, ignoring her screams of protest, and drug her toward the park bench where Dick seemed to be talking on the phone, some stupid smile on his face.

"Oh, he's here. I'll see you in a bit." He hung up the phone.

"That was?" Roy dropped Lian lightly and she scrambled over to the swing set. Oddly there were no other children on the playground. Roy absently pondered the strange emptiness.

"Raven."

"Who? Thought your friend's name was Rachel." Richard hesitated, seemingly debating over something.

"Welll… Her name _is_ Rachel, but… _I_ call her Raven… So you will probably call her Rachel… I think."

"_Riiight_…" Roy and Richard turned to watch Lian as she played with dirt. "Where are all the other kids?" Dick shrugged, "Maybe they're at that new Gymboree that just opened up on 2nd." Dick shrugged again.

It was silent for another minute, Roy uncomfortable with the silence spoke, "Soooo, this chick. What's she like?"

"First of all, she's not a chick. She's a lady. And second of all, don't worry about it. She's real nice, and I'm sure you'll like her." Dick assured which made Roy automatically on edge.

"Hmph." The two men watched Lian as she poked at something in the dirt. Roy wondered if he should go over and stop her.

"Ah!" Roy turned when Richard made a soft noise. He looked in the direction Dick was grinning and saw some woman rush up. She seemed a tad breathless as she reached them.

"Sorry for being late! There was this _huge_ roadblock and I had to go all the way around it. Sorry…!"

"Don't worry, Rae. We don't mind." Roy looked at the girl with strange colored hair and stranger colored eyes. She sported a light grey overcoat, black pants and apparently black boots. Her skin was alabaster white and her hair was a deep purple. But her eyes were the thing that caught him the most.

_Violet_. Roy wondered if they were contacts.

"Roy, meet Rachel." Roy stared at the attractive, smart young woman before him… and decided he didn't like her one bit. "Rachel, this is Roy."

"Pleasure." Rachel stuck her hand out politely and Roy shook it warily, as if handling a poisonous snake.

"Yeah." He said dumbly, a slight scowl on his face. Richard gave him a look while Raven watched him expectantly.

"So…?" She cast a side glance at Dick who cleared his throat and gave Roy a look.

"Oh, right," He said sheepishly, "Lian!"

Said girl looked up at the sound of the bane of her existence calling her name. There was some woman standing near him and the other man.

"Come here and meet Rachel." The evil one said. She glared at him, "Noooo!" She kicked dirt in his general direction and screamed. Roy turned and smirked at Raven.

"_You_ can handle _that_?" In turn Raven smiled wryly and curtly nodded, a ghost of a sigh escaping her lips as she approached the child. Richard grinned.

Rachel walked over to the fussing little girl and introduced herself in a kid-friendly way. Richard watched with a sense of pride as Lian allowed Raven to pick her up and put her on the swing, pushing her lightly. Roy also watched, somewhat shocked that Lian was behaving so well. Maybe she only liked women or something… It would make sense… right?

"Well?" Richard finally asked after a minute or two.

"Well, what?" Roy retorted, not in the mood for _I told you so'_s.

"She's good, huh?" Roy scowled and shrugged. "Don't be so hateful. Raven's got a lot of… practice with dealing with emotional people."

"You don't say." Roy watched indifferently as Lian hugged Raven, the woman whispering something. It was a strange sight indeed. Was she soothing Lian? For what? What happened?

"This is going to work, Roy. Raven does a lot of things, but failing isn't one of them. She's good at this. Trust me." Dick babbled on as Roy watched the two females on the playground.

Lian was looking up at Raven who in turn smiled down at her.

Lian smiled.

Roy gaped.

Dick continued to talk.

"-Okay?" He said after a while, waving a hand in front of Roy's face for he seemed to be out of sorts, his mouth slightly open and his eyes wide.

"Guh, zz, wha…?" It was quiet for two seconds before Dick burst out in laughter.

"Well…" he said, trying to catch his breath, "That was an intelligent response." He laughed a bit more as Raven walked back with Lian, holding her hand happily. Lian looked at Roy with less hatred than before and he looked back at her. They stared for several seconds before Rachel cleared her throat.

"Can I speak to you?" She asked lightly. Lian moved to sit on the bench, picking at her sweater absently.

"Ah… sure." Roy and Raven moved away from Dick and Lian. "So, how'd you do it?"

"Lian is a good girl, I'm guessing her mother raised her to be. She should start to trust you more, so be a little more cooperative, okay?" Roy gawked at her for a few seconds. Him? Uncooperative? Never!

"Tch. Fine." He finally answered after she started to look at him strangely.

"Thank you. I can see her next week… to see her progress, if you don't mind." Roy nodded unenthusiastically. Then he realized something.

"Wait, how'd you know about… you know, her mother?" Raven's face flushed a little and she seemed slightly caught off guard.

"Uh… Richard mentioned some things?" Roy's eyes narrowed and for a moment he was very upset with Dick. But then he figured he probably _had_ to tell her _some_ things about Lian, she _was_ a _professional_, or whatever it was Dick kept calling her.

Raven smiled professionally and they spoke about their next meeting, deciding to come back here so that Lian could play while they talked if necessary.

"It was wonderful working with Lian." Roy shrugged, not like he would know. Lian was always mean to him. Raven smiled again and walked over to Lian. She said goodbye and gave the little girl a hug. Then she stood up and gave Richard a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Lian went to play on the swings again as Roy sauntered over.

"So… she's your girlfriend." Dick gave him a look, "You didn't say that."

"No, I didn't. Because she's not." Roy grinned.

"Oh?"

"Oh, what?" Richard shot back.

"Are you sure?"

"Don't be stupid, Roy!" Richard snapped quietly. "She's really not. We're just… close. I've known her for a really long time, okay? That's all you need to worry about."

"Hmmm… sooo, what? She an old girlfriend, or something?" Dick shot him a glare and Roy put his hands up, "Okay, sorry, sorry."

The two men watched Lian and Roy decided she seemed a _little _more calm, she didn't shoot him glares every now and then, or kick dirt, or torture caterpillars she found on the sidewalk.

Maybe this Rachel lady wasn't so bad after all…

…But that doesn't mean he has to make friends with her either.

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**Author's Note**: Sorry if this is a disappointment. I don't think there was enough Raven action in this chapter, but at least it's more than a thousand words!

That's probably 'cause Raven was in it. Probably.

Even if only for a little bit…

Yeah, so expect more of Raven in the near future. Probably.

I know where I want to go with this story… but I'm not sure how to get there… Hmm… This might be a problem. I'll figure it out, though, so fret not.

Thanks for reading.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Teen Titans

**Reminder**: Dinah is Black Canary.

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**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Five_

So the meetings with Rachel continued. And while Roy was a tad reluctant to admit it…

Lian _was_ improving.

She didn't throw things as often.

She didn't scream as often.

She didn't cry as often.

She actually spoke to him today.

"Lian, you want some ice cream?" He had asked simply, though more because _he_was in the mood for ice cream and it would seem strange if a man walked out of the shop with a cone while his daughter was coneless.

She thought for a second, then instead of screaming no, she said, politely, "Yes." Richard would be impressed.

Roy knew he almost was.

Almost.

But he still didn't want to really trust this woman…

"So what do you think?" Dick asked one day.

"About what?"

"About Rachel." Dick said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

Roy wrinkled his nose. "I don't think about her."

"If you say so…" Roy looked at him from the corner of his eye suspiciously. And ever since they had that conversation, Roy was even more cautious around the woman.

Was Dick trying to set him up? After all that crap with Cheshire? Was he serious? There was no way he could handle another relationship, not at the moment.

Women were stress. Lian was more than enough for him, thanks.

But, despite how rude he may have acted towards her… Rachel still smiled at him. She still agreed to meet with Lian, and Roy began to wonder if perhaps she was just that kind of person. Someone who was nice, and accepting, and polite, and, and…

He just needed to stop thinking about this.

"Hey! Watch it, moron!" Roy snapped out of his daze just in enough time to pull himself out of the way of some rude skater who flipped him the bird and called him some crude name before disappearing around the corner. Dinah appeared beside him holding Lian.

"What was _that_ about?" She asked Roy carefully. He looked at her with tired eyes and shrugged.

"Some punk. Not important." Yesterday Dinah came over to make sure that Roy and Lian weren't killing each other when she found his fridge empty. She demanded that the three of them go shopping and Roy agreed, actually a little embarrassed that he hadn't restocked his fridge lately.

_Meeting with Rachel is throwing my schedule off…_ They still met at the park once a week. But it wasn't any set time, just _whenever_, as Rachel always said. She left it up to him to decide when they would meet. She was a little odd, he decided. Did she not have a job? _Gasp!! Was she a st… stripper?!_

No. Of course not. Just look at the way she dresses. And if he had ever voiced that stupid little curiosity, Dick would have his head.

"…ting lately?" Roy shook himself to catch the last bit of what Dinah was saying.

"What was that?" She stepped in front of him.

"I said how much sleep have you been getting lately?" Roy tried to think. How much sleep _was_ he getting these days? He decided not to try and figure out and opted to putting the recently purchased groceries in the trunk of his car instead.

"How's patrol?" Dinah asked instead. Roy thought back to a week or two ago. There was a break-in at some electronics store, selling video games and televisions, not unusual, but nothing was taken. It was a little shocking, but Arsenal just figured that it was a couple of thugs who lost their nerve at the last minute and hightailed it out of there before he or the cops could arrive.

But the same thing happened two days ago.

Only this time at a different place. Still selling electronics, only this time computers, but nothing was stolen _again_. Just some broken glass and some… hot sauce on the wall… which was… very peculiar.

Maybe it was a prank.

Maybe somebody just liked breaking windows.

Or maybe it was some big operation that Arsenal hadn't caught wind of yet.

But why take nothing?

"It's been… well." He didn't want Black Canary to know. Not yet, anyway. It might just be nothing, and there was no need to get worked up for no reason. "Pretty tame, actually."

"Really? Hmm…" Dinah gave him a sharp look as she started the car and Roy changed the subject.

"So, how's, ah… you know… the old man?" Roy looked at Dinah and she sighed.

"I don't understand why you two won't just talk to each other, I mean, he asks about you too, you know." She shook her head and exhaled, "He's fine. Doing just fine. Been a little bored lately, though, I'll admit."

"Really? Hasn't been up to anything?" Roy looked out the window and watched the scenery blur as they sped along the road.

"Not that I know of. Oh! Actually, I think he was trying to develop some new equipment. But he hasn't really talked to me about it." Roy closed his eyes and leaned his head against the window.

He listened to the sound of the tires on the road, the sound of Lian snoring softly in the back seat, and the sound of his own heartbeat pounding in his head. His eyelids felt so heavy, it was ridiculous.

Maybe he _did_ need to get more sleep.

He wondered if Rachel would mind if he cancelled tomorrow's meeting. But how would that affect Lian, he wondered.

Roy didn't know when exactly it was that he dozed off but the next thing he knew Dinah poking his forehead.

"See? You're exhausted, what do you mean patrol's been easy lately? What's _really_ been going on?"

Roy muttered, "The patrols are crazy easy. I stay up late waiting for something to happen, but then nothing ever does," he yawned, "So I end up staying awake for nothing…" Dinah looked at him hard for a moment before shrugging and carrying Lian in the house.

Roy was both pleased and mortified at how easily the lie came to him, half asleep and everything.

As he grabbed the few bags of food items, and followed Dinah into the apartment, he heard her ask, "So when are you supposed to meet that lady again?"

"Uh, actually tomorrow, I think. But I might cancel, you know, catch up on sleep."

"You shouldn't do that." Dinah started putting groceries away after laying Lian down on the couch.

"Why not?" Roy sat at the table and watched her, still feeling a little drowsy, absently contemplating following Lian's example and taking a nap for himself.

"It'll mess up all of Lian's progress if you miss a week! How about I take her?"

"I don't know about that." Roy shut his eyes against Dinah's mild glare.

"Why _not_?"

"Well, you've never met her, first of all. Second of all, you don't know how Lian will react to having you there."

"Well, what normally goes on during these little dates of yours?"

Roy decided to ignore that little date comment, "Rachel will play with Lian, talk to her. Just spend time with her, really. Sometimes she'll call me over and we'll talk."

"What about?" Dinah pulled out the chair across from Roy and sat down.

"She'll normally give me tips on how to deal with Lian's tantrums. Or she'll start asking me if I've noticed any changes in her behavior, stuff like that. _Purely_ professional."

"Do you like her?" Roy's eyebrow twitched unintentionally.

"Well, _that's_ got everything to do with _nothing_."

"Well, is she pretty?" Dinah leaned forward, a blonde curl falling into her face gently and her blue eyes watching Roy like a hawk.

"I'm not answering that question." Roy stood up and stretched, "I'm gonna hit the hay, now so I can go to that stupid meeting tomorrow. Feel free to _leave_ anytime." Roy left to his room and closed the door more loudly than normal, but thankfully, Lian still did not stir.

The blonde woman chuckled before standing up lazily and sauntering out of the house. She had a feeling that Roy liked this woman, he was just a little reluctant to admit it…

Either that or he really hated her guts but didn't want to tell anyone.

Her drive home was quiet and thoughtless until she reached the front door of her humble abode.

She opened the door and inhaled deeply.

"So how was your date with the kid?" A rough and familiar masculine voice called from the living room.

Dinah sighed. Did she not _just_ have this conversation with a certain hardheaded ginger?

"God, I just do not understand you men."

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**Author's Note: **Yay, chapter five's done, working on chapter six and seven. So, I figure about four or five weeks has passed since Rachel met Lian.

Sorry, I had to stop writing soon, otherwise it would start sounding like nonsense.

What did you think?

The guy Dinah's talking to is Oliver, aka Green Arrow, by the way.

So? _What did you think?_ I actually kind of like this chapter, if I do say so myself.

A little slow, and not a lot of actual stuff going on, but things are starting to happen… Right? I'm working on it...!

Thank you for reading.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Teen Titans

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**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Six_

"So how has Lian been lately?" Roy rolled his neck tiredly, taking his sweet time in answering Rachel's question. She waited patiently as he popped his shoulder once and shrugged lazily.

"Normal, I guess." He watched as the girl seemed to be talking with some other child on the playground.

It was a little nice seeing her more social.

"Normal how? Normal as in screaming every five minutes, or normal as in average child behavior? I'm sorry Roy, but you're going to have to be just a _little_ more specific than that." Rachel added, her voice polite, but something about her tone made him think she was being a tad sarcastic with him.

Sarcastic.

With him.

Who gave her the right?

Did she have the right?

Did it even matter?

"Uh… normal average behavior, I guess…" She nodded curtly, but Roy noticed it. He noticed the look of pride on her face. Was she proud of herself or Lian? Roy found himself watching her for a bit. He hadn't noticed before, but there was a small scar on her right cheekbone. It was very light, and he wouldn't have noticed it if he hadn't… been…

Staring like some freaking weirdo. Roy adverted his gaze sharply and ignored Dinah's taunting voice in the back of his head.

"I'm glad." She smiled and Roy chanced one more look at her before regretting it. So she wasn't ugly, Roy decided. She wasn't exactly a bombshell, either, though. Roy preferred his women hot and feisty, while Rachel seemed…

Lukewarm…

And feeble…

Well, maybe not feeble, but not exactly life-of-the-party type either. She seemed a little dull and monotone. What was with her clothes? Always wearing grays and blacks, she threw in a dark blue or even darker red from time to time he noticed, but… Was her whole wardrobe like that? What kind of life did she live? Was she the kind of lady who had seventeen cats at home waiting for her to tell them all about her lonely and boring day? What were her other friends like? Did she have other friends?

Roy kept running questions about the girl through his mind and wondered if Dick would be honest with him if he asked. Possibly… but possibly not. What _was _the deal with those two…

_We're just… close._

_That's all you need to worry about._

How close? Did she break his heart? Did he still love her?

_Why should I even care?_ Roy asked himself. He sighed, cursing himself for thinking too much again. He really should just let sleeping dogs lie.

"So, have you tried being more friendly with her?" Rachel asked. Roy sighed. He didn't know _how_ to be friendly with a two-year-old. It's not like he's had much practice, or a willing participant. Lian was probably just as mean to him as she thought Roy was to her… though…

She _had_ been acting less of a handful.

The last time she had beaned him was about two weeks ago, and she threw a plush doll. Plush dolls are a much better improvement from juice-filled-cups and edible food items.

Roy sighed and reluctantly admitted, "No," Rachel sighed also.

"She _has_ been behaving better, _right_?" Roy rolled his neck again, wondering if perhaps he had slept wrong the night before.

"Well, yeah, but--"

"No. No buts. If Lian has been being nice to you, you should be nice to her. Reward her for her efforts, I mean… at least _she's_ trying." Rachel said curtly and with a clipped tone. She seemed annoyed or angry, or _something_ at Roy.

But that last thing she had said…

_at least _she's _trying…_

_What_ was _that_ supposed to mean?

Did she not think that Roy had already tried being nice to her?

Did she not think that maybe Roy was getting tired of trying to be nice to her?

Did she not think that maybe Lian _was_ better off with her mother, despite whatever Cheshire may have said?

No. Of course she didn't.

Rachel didn't know Cheshire… Rachel didn't even _look_ like the kind of person that would know someone like Cheshire.

Cheshire was like an exotic flower. Or something that is clearly big and bold and beautiful… like a… well, like a red rose. That's pretty self-explanatory, right? Bold. Beautiful. Passionate.

Rachel didn't really seem to be _any_ of those things.

Rachel was more of a daisy. Nothing spectacular. Nothing special. Just another daisy.

Like he'd mentioned earlier.

_Lukewarm._

_Feeble._

Rachel was not the type of woman he would want to associate himself with if he could help it. Perhaps Dinah _should_ meet Rachel. Then she'd stop hounding him and understand what he means when he says he's _not_ interested in _any_ way.

Roy decided that the _only_ reason he kept seeing Rachel was because Rachel, _somehow_, was making Lian behave better. Whether it be through bribery, or that actual understanding bull_crap_. He didn't really care. He was tired.

Tired of seeing Rachel.

And… just tired of seeing life.

God, had he always been so emotional?

This wasn't like him. This wasn't Roy.

Roy didn't get depressed because boring little psychiatrists scolded him for not buying his kid a candy and toy for not throwing crap at him. _What was he turning into?!_

_Am I having an identity crisis?_ Roy thought suddenly, his eyes widening in mild horror. _That_ was just about the last thing he needed at the moment.

Roy closed his eyes. He shook his head. Took a deep breath. And opened his eyes.

Things looked sunnier with your head cleared. Lian still played with that other child on the playground.

And Rachel still stood next to him, looking a little unnerved. He hadn't said any of those things out loud, had he? He figured not. He _hoped _not.

"You know, you're probably right. I'll try… to connect with her more…" Roy muttered sheepishly, scratching his head and looking slightly down, not wanting to meet Rachel's eyes. She didn't say anything and he chanced a look up at her.

She was smiling.

And she looked happy. Roy nervously swallowed and smiled slowly back at her, not really knowing exactly what it was she was doing.

Seemed her stupid happiness was contagious.

And then a cell phone ring ruined it all.

* * *

**Author's Note:** This chapter feels awkward. From now on my goal is 2,000 to 3,000 words per chapter. It's still not very long, but I think it's an improvement. And sorry for the slightly weird Roy in this chapter.

Thanks for reading.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Teen Titans

* * *

**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Seven_

First Roy cursed the phone for interrupting the moment.

Then he cursed himself for actually believing that there _was_ a moment.

Rachel apologized, excusing herself politely to answer. She looked at the caller ID and smiled, "Oh, it's Richard." She gave a short smile to Roy before picking up and saying hello. Roy wondered if Dick was secretly watching them and called at that moment on purpose. He glanced back at Lian to make sure she was still on the swings and found her on the slide with a different child instead. His eyes moved back and forth between Rachel and Lian, then they decided to rest on a tree that wasn't really doing anything interesting. He listened to Rachel speak happily into the phone and prayed that Richard wasn't planning on talking long.

"Yeah, actually he's right here," Roy twitched and looked at her, one brow arched in suspicion. She made eye contact and seemed momentarily stunted. "You… want to talk to him?" The man sighed and held his hand out and she placed the phone in his palm gently after saying quickly, "Here he is…"

"What?" Roy said almost rudely and ignored the look Rachel gave him.

"_Soo… how goes it?_" Was he serious? Did he call just to check up on how things were? He was using someone else's phone for crying out loud.

"Is that what you called about?" Roy asked, a little bewildered.

Dick chuckled, "_No._" Roy waited for him to continue… but he didn't.

"Well, what then?" Roy swore he could _hear_ the smile in Dick's voice when he answered.

"_So, how'd you like to get together tonight?_" Rachel had wandered off to push Lian on the swing, she looked like she wasn't paying much attention to Roy anymore.

"What are you talking about?" Roy asked carefully.

"_You, me, Rae… Hang out? Dinner? You know._" Roy almost smirked when he realized he had an actual excuse not to go.

"Can't. Nobody can watch Lian." He grinned after Dick was silent for a few seconds.

Then he said, "_Bring her with._" Roy frowned, "_Yeah, actually, you know what? Why not invite Dinah, too?"_ What, was he serious?

"Dick, I--"

"I_ insist." _Roy's lip curled up and he knew he had a mean look on his face. He turned away from the pair on the playground as he gnashed his teeth together. Had Dick planned this out? Probably did, the cocky little…

"Fine. Yeah. I'll bring Lian. _And _Dinah." Roy said suddenly and Dick grinned. Roy smirked wondering if this whole little escapade could work out in _his _favor. Not only would Dinah see how _not_ his type Rachel was, Lian might not behave with so many people around.

"_Great. Dave and Buster's. 5:30. Be there. Now give the phone back to Raven."_ Roy smirked again as he ventured onto the playground and handed the phone to said girl. She took it carefully before giving him a strange look and answering.

"Yes?…Oh really?… That's great!" She smiled again at Roy before motioning her hand at the still swinging Lian and moving away. Roy almost panicked. Lian swung back and forth her tempo slowly waning and Roy knew if he didn't do something fast Lian might start crying.

_Reward her for her efforts…_

Right. Reward her. Giving her a little push on the swing was a start, right? Roy stepped cautiously behind Lian and very gently pushed against her back. Lian didn't seem to cry out or do any other inane thing, so he did it again. And again. Lian started laughing and saying, "Whee!" and she seemed happy. Roy didn't realize he was smiling until it turned into a grin.

Rachel came back over silently and smiled up at him. He stopped pushing Lian for a moment to ask what had happened on the phone.

"Tonight should be great. I can't wait to meet Dinah, she sounds like an exciting person."

_More exciting that you could ever be…_ A terrible and mean little voice whispered in the back of Roy's head before he could stop it and he almost gasped at the harshness of it. That was cruel! So Rachel wasn't exactly his friend, that didn't mean he was going to be unnecessarily mean to her!

Rachel still had a small smile on her face, looking pleased, not having really noticed Roy's own mortification at himself. He had helped Lian off the swing and was holding her hand as they walked to their separate vehicles. "5:30, okay?" Rachel called back to him. He nodded and waved as they went their separate ways.

"So then," Roy muttered as he fixed Lian in her car seat with surprisingly little resistance, "Let's see…"

He climbed into the driver's seat and started the car. He had things to do. He had to call Dinah… He needed to shower… He needed to get Lian ready… His stomach growled and reminded him that Lian was probably just as hungry as he was if not hungrier. They decided to stop at a Denny's restaurant and order something to go. Lian wanted those pancakes that looked like a face and Roy hoped it wasn't a mistake ordering them for her… those things looked like they had been ridiculously _packed_ with sugar.

But if anyone could call him on it, he would say he was just following Rachel's advice and _rewarding_ her.

Roy called Dinah as soon as he got home. "Yeah, you remember Dick, right?" he said into the phone while setting Lian in a chair and setting up her meal for her. Lian dug in hungrily. "Yeah, yeah. He wants to have some sort of get together or something…" Lian watched Roy shuffle through the kitchen in search of something. "I _know_ it's short notice, but I _need_ you to come!" He rifled through the drawers, the cupboards, the dishwasher, the sink, even curiously peeking in the fridge, "Rachel will be there." He said with a huff and put his hand oddly on his hip as he watched Lian eat. She stared back at him. _Where are the forks?_ He mouthed to her as if she knew what he were talking about.

"What, you were all excited about her yesterday… No. I don't think he should come." Roy paused and turned away from Lian's odd staring. "Well… I don't know, I think it would be awkward, don't you?" Roy was silent for a long time and he rolled his eyes twice. He turned back around to face Lian and saw that she was missing, her pancakes turned to nothing but scraps and dribbles of syrup all over the dish and on the table. He looked around quickly and wondered how it was possible she could have gotten away so quickly without him hearing her get off the chair.

"_Are you listening to me?!_" An angry female voice carried through the receiver and Roy rolled his eyes a third time.

"Yes, I'm listening! So, will you come?" He asked while walking quickly through the strangely quiet house looking for the tiny red head that was his flesh and blood. She wasn't in the living room… she wasn't in the bathroom…

"_Fine! Fine, I'll come! But you owe me. I don't know what I want, but whatever it is, whenever I figure it out, you'd better give it to me, go it?" _Roy nodded, not remembering that she couldn't see him, "_Got it?!_"

"Yes! Jeez! Anyway, how long will it take you to get ready?" Roy pondered calling out for the girl but didn't want to alert Dinah to the fact he could not find her.

"_As long as I want."_ She replied, her tone catty. So she was little annoyed. Roy wasn't deterred by that.

"No, really. I need you to come over and watch Lian while I shower." He said finally venturing to the girl's room carefully, wondering if it was a trap.

"_Are you kidding me? What am I, your nanny? Maid? Slave? I swear…"_ Roy heard her sigh, "_Fine, fine. I'll be over in an hour to help her get dressed, but I'll have to do my make up at your place, got it? Have an outfit for her out and ready so I can dress her alright?_"

"Thank you so much, Dinah. I mean it. You're a life… saver…" Lian was halfway under her bed and she was making odd noises, like she was having trouble with something. He titled his head and muttered a goodbye as Dinah hung up. Roy approached her and crouched down to try to see better.

"Lian?"

"Help!" She cried and Roy tried to see under the bed as Lian wiggled out from underneath. "Help!" She cried again, pointing under the bed.

"What is it?" He asked ducking low and finally having to lie on his stomach to see under her low child's bed.

And there they were.

The forks.

All of them.

Stuck to the carpet with what looked to be half eaten candy. Roy gasped. He sat back up on his knees and stared at Lian. She stared back.

"Did you do that?" He asked slowly and in a whisper. She stared again and shook her head. "Are you sure?" Lian took a longer time to answer, but shook her head again. "Are you _really _sure?" Lian looked away and lifted her shoulders and dropped them quickly in an overdramatic shrug. Roy sighed. He looked back under the bed and wondered if there was a kind of cleaner he could use to free all of his forks from their sticky candy made prisons… but probably not. Great.

"Alright then. That's no good." He looked at Lian who looked like she may cry. He hoped not. He hated tears and snot and the loud wailing that made his neighbors bang on the walls and ceiling, shouting at him to keep it down. "Don't cry." Roy begged and Lian's eyes suddenly cleared up. She sniffed once and played with her shirt. Roy looked down at her clothes and shook his head.

She was a complete mess. Dinah would have a fit. He could hear her yelling now…

Roy sighed again, "Come on…" He stood up and led Lian to the bathroom, sitting her on the counter and wetting a washcloth sitting by the sink. He ran the rag down her arms and rubbed her hands hoping they were getting cleaner. Lian watched him warily. He gave her a look when he realized there was snot running down her face.

"Ugh…" he swiped at it with the rag and shivered when more came out. Snot, mucus… anything coming from the nose, was always rather gross to him. He absolutely deplored it when he was sick and his nose just would not _stop_ running. Like freaking Niagara Falls or something… He absently wondered if Lian was getting a cold.

After a few more swipes it seemed to stop, Roy sighed in relief. _Children are a lot of work_, he thought. Then another thought crossed his mind. _Where did Lian get that candy from…?_ He watched her watch him for about five seconds and then decided it didn't particularly matter at this point. She had probably done it a few weeks ago, sneaking forks one by one, under her bed to meet their sticky fate. Little gremlin… but she had admitted to it, sort of, and seemed to be sorry, so…

You can't stay mad at a child, it's unethical.

Roy helped Lian off of the counter and herded her into her bedroom where he placed her on her bed. Roy then moved to Lian's closet and started rifling through random articles of clothing. When he had first received Lian, there was but a small package for him to take as Lian's belongings. It held a few shirts, a pair of shorts, two pairs of child jeans that Lian had already outgrown and three summer dresses. And being that it was nearing winter… Roy had to go out and buy her all new outfits. Put a dent in his wallet for a while, but what kind of father would he be if he let Lian run around in rags and other clothes that had barely fit her?

"Alright, kiddo, we've got a date tonight with some pals… you want to go casual or stun them with one of your dazzling outfits we bought a few weeks ago…?" Lian stared at Roy, she scrunched her face up and looked at the ceiling, placing a tiny finger on her chin as thought she were thinking. After a moment Lian stood up off of the bed and walked over to her dresser. Struggling to pull open one of the bottom drawers she looked inside and started haphazardly throwing things across the room until she found what she was looking for. A pair of pink cotton shorts nearly landed on Roy's head and he narrowly dodged it.

She made a noise as she seemed to find what she was looking for. Whipping around to show Roy, she showed off a green t-shirt with a smiling cat on it. Roy's eyes softened and he felt a dull ache in his chest.

It was one of the t-shirts Cheshire had given her… It was probably Lian's favorite shirt.

It reminded them both of her mother.

Roy smiled wryly and gave Lian a look, she pleaded with her eyes. Roy sighed, kicked at the white carpet and shrugged. "Al_right_…" Lian squealed in delight and ran to put the shirt on. "Just try not to get dirty, okay?" He pulled a pair of simple blue jeans out for her with a dark brown jacket in case it got cold. When Lian walked back into the room, they looked at each other again. Roy glanced at the shirt and sighed, a little dejected looking. Roy sighed. How much longer until Dinah showed up?

Looking at the small Hello Kitty clock on Lian's wall he saw that he had about half an hour left… which was just enough time for Lian to watch one Backyardigans episode. He called the toddler into the living room and flipped on the TV. Lian was immediately engrossed in the show and it gave Roy enough time to finish eating his meal from Denny's and look through a magazine when he heard a sudden knock on the door, Dinah ended up letting herself in.

"Hey, I'm here!" He heard her venture further into the apartment, "Hello, Lian, where's your daddy?" He heard Lian mutter something unintelligible and Dinah moved into the kitchen, "Ro--! Oh, there you are." She was wearing a nice blouse, a black leather jacket and pair of slacks. "Well, how do I look?" Roy shrugged.

"I don't know, you look nice. Lian's outfit's on her bed." Roy hurried past Dinah as she huffed at him. "I'm taking a shower now, you know where Lian is. I'll be out in fifteen minutes, alright?" He glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost 4:30.

Dinah nodded and shooed him off, making some inane comment that he was starting to smell.

Roy took a hot shower, hoping to calm himself for the whatever the night might hold for him, and he hoped that nothing bad happened while he was off being Roy Harper instead of Arsenal.

"Roy? You ready to leave yet? Lian's getting antsy!" Dinah called to him from the living room after he had gotten dressed, wearing a simple t-shirt and jacket with a pair of his old worn jeans. He ran his fingers through his hair, already it was drying, and shook his head hoping he didn't look like some idiot.

He sighed and braced himself. _Here goes…_

* * *

**Author's Note: **Well, there it is! Over 2,500 words! My longest chapter so far… I don't know if you noticed but I started rambling… like the snot part? That was just me losing focus a little… There's actually a lot of stuff I need to work on. Like Raven is more out of character then I had intended for her to be. Also, for anyone wondering where everyone else is? They _will_ be in the story, so stop fretting. Garfield, Victor, and Kori will be in the story, I promise you. I don't think it would be a very good Teen Titans story if half the characters were missing. You probably don't think it would be either. So let's not go down that road.

Gosh, it's been ten days since my last update. I'm sorry. That's longer than I wanted it, but I had not the time to sit down and upload, sorry.

Thanks anyway for reading. Next up: Dave and Buster's!! Don't miss it!


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Teen Titans.

**Author's Note**: You know, sometimes you guys really just make my day. I mean it. You make me smile with the stuff you write and I appreciate all you guys do for me. Please enjoy.

* * *

**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Eight_

The smell of burgers beinggrilled, the sound of their sizzling and the warm atmosphere were all things that Lian picked up on as Dinah carried her through the door of this strange place. People were laughing and talking and cheering, games were pinging. She felt confused. Why did the man bring her here? She pushed her face into Dinah's blondehair and heard her try to say something to Roy.

"Do you know if they're here?" Dinah had to shout over the other people's voices in order to be heard by Roy who looked like he was already engrossed in trying to figure out what game he should play first. She was about to shout again when she heard someone call to them.

"Roy! Dinah!" It was Dick. He waved happily at them and the three made their way over. It was a big enough table, Dick and Rachel were already sittingdown, Rachel sipping what appeared to be lemonade through a straw. Lian saw her and reached out for her. Rachel seemed mildly surprised but accepted Lian as Dinah handed her over in a silent stupor. Rachel and Lian engaged in a conversation consistingof cats and the color green, with Lian gesturingwildly at her shirt. Rachel kept nodding, although she seemed to have a hard time understanding what the child was saying.

"Dinah, it's great to see you again." Dick mentioned politely, pulling her chair out for her. Roy scoffed, _Brownnoser. _He ran his gaze over their surroundings. It was such a warm and happy atmosphere, he smiled slightly. He felt like he was over his inner turmoil and was back to be good ol' Roy Harper. A cute waitress came along and took their drink orders and left again. Perhaps it was just him, but Roy could have sworn that waitress winked at him. Maybe she was just being friendly…?

Roy sighed and his mood suddenly darkened. It wasn't his fault God made him so freaking gorgeous. Couldn't the women just back off, though? Really? Maybe if he was the one holding Lian… Roy shook his head at no one when he remembered that chicks had a thing for single fathers, too. Jeez, just his luck. His eyes strayed to Lian. She was still making wild gestures with her hands, telling Rachel about something. Said woman merely nodded a somewhat bemused smile on her face, taking yet another sip of her lemonade. Roy curiously pondered if it really was _just lemonade_. Dinah was looking over the menu and Dick seemed to be checking something on his phone.

Roy cleared his throat. "So, Rachel, Dinah. Have you two been properly introduced yet?" The two women looked from Roy to each other, then back at Roy. Dinah shrugged and offered her hand to Rachel.

"Dinah Drake." Rachel politely returned the gesture.

"Rachel Roth." Roy smirked as Dinah quickly began asking Rachel questions about her "relationship" with Roy. Meaning she was asking how they met (which Roy already told her), how often they get to see each other (which she probably knew also), and a bunch of other unnecessary and probably inappropriate questions. Roy tuned them out and turned his head away. His gaze fell on another woman, sitting a few tables away from him. An attractive redhead winked back at him, giving him a less than innocent smile and Roy fought the urge to roll his eyes. He lifted the right corner of his mouth and nodded curtly, hastily fixing his eyes back on the table.

Roy looked over at Dick who now seemed to be engaged in a conversation with Dinah while Lian seemed to somehow take over Rachel's attention again. Rachel didn't seem to really mind as she took another drink from her almost empty glass. It made him realize how dry his throat was getting. Where was that lady with their drinks.

"Here you go!" A woman's arm came out from behind Roy, his ordered iced tea in hand, her arm brushing his shoulder in the process. Leaning flagrantly over him, Roy grit his teeth and tried to pretend not to notice how fresh this waitress was trying to get with him. "Enjoy." She murmured in his ear and Roy muttered a thank you, an annoyed smile on his face. A waiter placed a platter of mozzarella sticks and nachos on the table, refilling Rachel's drink and seemingly serving everyone else at the table.

"You folks ready to order?" The man asked in a friendly tone. Roy and Dick ordered burgers, Dinah asked for a plate of chicken Alfredo, while Rachel and Lian both ordered mini-cheeseburgers, the waiter smiled genially and walked away. Roy looked at the red fruit juice that Lian had been sipping from and wondered if it were cranberry juice. Then his mind wandered to why the man had taken their orders and not the lady, and why had she only served Roy _his_ drink? Did no one else notice these oddities? Why was it bothering him so much? He decided to dismiss it after Lian tapped his hand and started telling him a creative story about a fox and a bird.

After her story, in which everyone at the table seemed engrossed in, their food arrived. Dick and Dinah started talking while Rachel moved Lian to a high chair seated between herself and Dinah. Lian was ecstatic about the cute little hamburgers and seemed happy that she and Rachel were eating the same thing. Roy watched their exchange, the way Lian was acting so silly and comfortably around Rachel unnerved him a little. Was that how she had acted with Cheshire? His mind wandered again to his old lover and he couldn't help but ask,

_Why did you leave her?_ Lian couldn't have been as happy with Roy as she had probably been with Cheshire. _So why did you leave?_ Roy couldn't find the answer before his stomach growled and reminded him that dinner was served. He ate numbly, not completely registering how great the burger tasted or how it seemed to just melt in his mouth. His mind was on auto-pilot. Bite. Chew. Chew. Chew. Swallow. Repeat. Roy continued to watch Rachel and Lian, the woman seeming to play a sort of game with her. Whatever Rachel did Lian copied. If Rachel lifted a fry to her mouth then put it back down, Lian would do the same. If Rachel took a bite of her sandwich, Lian would take a bite of hers. Lian seemed to get a kick out of it. Every now and again Rachel would glance at Roy and he would have to look away, embarrassed for being caught and embarrassed for staring at them in the first place.

How did she do it? How did she succeed where Roy failed? Maybe it was a girl thing. Lian took a pretty quick liking to Dinah, too, after all. After a while, Lian stopped playing the game with Rachel and started paying attention to Dinah, marveling at her red fingernails. Dinah showed them to her with much enthusiasm, happy that the girl hadn't forgotten her presence. Lian wanted nails like Dinah, so Dinah promised to bring some paint with her the next time she came over. Lian asked what kind of paint Dinah would use which led the woman to give an explanation on the different types of paints, their uses, and the colors she would bring for Lian to choose from.

Though, Roy wasn't listening to any of that. His mind was off again, thinking about a certain raven haired woman and where she could be and how she could leave her child with him and…

"Hey, Rae. Bet you can't beat me at Super Shot." Dick announced across the table, loudly enough to snap Roy out of his thoughts. Rachel shrugged one shoulder then gave a half smile.

"Well, Richard, that's because I probably can't."

Dick grinned cockily, "Let's find out." he challenged. Rachel shrugged, a tiny smirk playing itself on her face.

"Fine." The pair left the table and Roy watched as Dick shoved lightly at Rachel's shoulder playfully. That was something Dick might do… But Roy wasn't expecting Rachel to shove him back. Dick threw his head back and seemed to laugh loudly while placing an arm comfortably around Raven's shoulder and pulling her against him.

"He seems really comfortable with her, don't you think?" Dinah pointed out and Roy snorted.

"But they're _not_ dating." Lian watched as some random waitress, not the one who winked at Roy, refilled Lian's juice, smiling at the young girl and walking away. Lian immediately fumbled to take a drink as Dinah pulled on a lock of red, reminding her to slow down.

"Could've fooled me." Roy nodded in agreement as Dick and Rachel both made a basket. "She seems alright, though. I don't know what your deal was." She pet Lian's head. "Why don't you like her?"

Roy shrugged, "It's not that…" He didn't know how to explain it, really. It wasn't so much Rachel as it was… just…

_Women_. He was… done with women.

For now, at least. Once Lian was old enough to look after herself, and Roy was back to being the old handsome charmer he once was, then maybe he would look for a lady… but for now… For now he was off women.

When Roy didn't say anything else, both their eyes seemed to move back to Dick and Rachel again. The game looked like it was just about over, surprisingly, they were tied. Dick bumped his shoulder into Rachel's hoping to throw her off, but as retaliation Rachel bumped her hip against Dick's at just the right moment, costing him the game. Rachel won, despite having said that she probably wouldn't. Roy wondered if it was all just a clever ploy.

"You cheated." Dick said, seemingly mildly upset that Rachel beat him. She merely shrugged her shoulders, not sorry for beating him, and not looking too surprised about it either. She sat down and Dinah congratulated her on her skills, asking where Rachel had learned to play like that. Rachel went into a story about how, at her college, she would help her friends train for basketball tryouts and all that. Dick engaged Roy in a conversation about some new action flick that was supposed to come out next month and the what each other's opinions on it were. So while each of the adults were paying attention to his or her own conversation…

No one seemed to be watching Lian. The small girl fiddled with her nearly full drink, and the lid came off with a small pop. She took the lid and played with it, amusing herself…

Roy, while still trying to talk to Dick, glanced and noticed how close Lian's lidless drink was to the edge. That's obviously not very safe, so he moved to grab it and bring it more towards him. He wasn't necessarily watching where his hand was going, but Lian was. How dare this man try to take away her only form of entertainment! Did he want her to simply sit here and rot of boredom? She thought not! Lian frowned and screamed, "No!" as she slapped his hand away which sent it off course… And Roy watched in confused horror, everything seeming to move more slowly, as his hand knocked over Lian's juice cup, its contents spilling out onto Rachel's lap. Suddenly the woman gasped and stood up quickly, shocked by the coldness of the liquid. Things froze at their table, and each person grew still. Rachel closed her eyes and breathed through her nose.

Her eyebrow twitched.

Slowly her hands curled into fists at her sides as her back straightened.

She tilted her head and said, "I'm going to the ladies room." Rachel stiffly moved out of her seat and disappeared into the crowd. Dinah sighed.

"I'm gonna go help her out." She said as she picked up Lian and followed after Rachel. Dick muttered something to Dinah but Roy was too busy replaying the last few moment's events in his head.

Lian moved her cup close to the edge.

Roy went to fix it.

Lian, for whatever reason, knocked his hand over, which caused Lian's juice to spill onto Rachel's lap…

He was so dead. How could he make up for this?

_God, I hope it doesn't stain…_ She was wearing denim jeans, right? You can't stain denim… can you?

Roy's head dropped on the table and he let out a defeated sigh. Dick awkwardly patted him on the back.

"Don't worry. I don't think she's mad at you…" He said lightly.

"Dick… why did that happen?" Dick looked at his friend, not understanding the question.

"Uh… I don't know." He lifted his head, his tired green eyes staring into Dick's crystal blue ones. They stayed like that for a while.

Then it started making Dick uncomfortable. "Well, maybe Dinah has an idea. She's pro at situations like these." He tried again, looking for anything to look at to ignore Roy's odd stare.

Said man sighed and stood up. "I'm going to go outside for a while, 'kay?" Dick nodded and watched as Roy drug his seemingly tired body through the throng of people and out the door.

After he saw the door open and close, assuming it was Roy, Dick let out a breath he had been holding. Things went from awesome to awkward in about 3.5 seconds… it had to be a record. Dick stared at the ceiling for a while before muttering to himself. "Raven is such a cheater."

Meanwhile, outside Roy was able to breathe more easily. The air was crisp and a little chilly, which seemed normal enough for a late August evening. He stood outside and watched couples go in and out of the restaurant. The night actually had been going rather smoothly. Then… one little mess up. He vaguely wondered if Rachel was mad at him, despite the fact that it wasn't directly his fault. He was _trying_ to _prevent_ something like that from happening… what a mess.

Roy didn't know how long he was outside for, but that his mind was actually comfortably empty. He wasn't thinking about anything, and he wasn't focusing on anything… just…

"Roy?" The man snapped out of his deal and looked over at the woman who called him. It was Rachel. Roy fought the urge to snicker when he noticed the outfit Rachel was now wearing. A black skirt, it sat just above the knee. That wasn't bad or anything… but that left the rest of her leg exposed. Well, exposed until you reached about mid-calf… which was where she had her socks pulled up to. It looked a little funny, but it probably made sense to her since it was a little chilly out… or maybe she forgot she was wearing them.

"I'm not mad you know." She said suddenly after having moved to stand next to him. Roy shrugged. "It's wasn't your fault, not really anyway." Roy still didn't say anything. "Richard said you looked upset about…"

"I wasn't." Roy stated suddenly and Raven stopped. It was quiet for several seconds before she spoke again.

"Well, then." To Roy's ears she sounded a little miffed. They stood quietly again.

"You want to go back inside?" Roy asked quietly and Rachel shrugged, both moving for the entrance of the restaurant. Dinah opened the door, narrowly missing Rachel's nose.

"Hey! Roy! Roy, where are--! Oh! There you kids are," Dinah grinned at the pair winked. "Listen, Miss Lian and I agreed she'd be spending the weekend with me." Roy stared at her, flabbergasted. "Ain't that right, Miss Lian?" said girl nodded enthusiastically, a mischievous gleam in her eye enough to rival Dinah's. "So it's settled." They started walking away, I'm taking her home to get her things packed."

"How… How are you doing that, we came in _my_ car." Dinah's grin grew wider as she winked and produced a spare set of Roy's car keys from out of her jacket pocket. Lian giggled.

"Don't worry, I'll come get you in about an hour or so. Take a walk with Rachel for now. You guys can talk about _professional_ things." Dinah winked at Roy and he rolled his eyes. The two girls began walking away, Dick in tow. He bid Roy goodnight and gave Rachel a hug before mounting his motorcycle and leaving as well. The pair stood silently and wondered, _Did that really just happen?_

"So, uh, where'd the skirt come from?" Roy started awkwardly. Rachel's cheeks seemed to burn red for a moment as she answered,

"Dinah had a spare one in her purse." Which led to Roy wanting to ask a few more questions.

Why was Dinah carrying spare articles of clothing in her purse?

Did she do this often?

And why?

In either case, asking Rachel would give him no answers so he dropped the subject. But then it started to get uncomfortably stiff again.

Rachel sighed, "So, shall we get started?" she asked, her voice taking on a tone Roy had never really heard from her before. Roy nodded and they wandered into a park. They came across a bench and sat down, Roy feeling unsure of himself while Rachel seemed like she didn't want to be there either.

"What do you do for a living?" the woman asked suddenly and it caught Roy off guard.

He stuttered, "Uh… I guess you could call me a government worker…" That was sort of true, he did receive checks from the government for his good deeds and whatnot.

"So, what, like FBI stuff?" She asked, this time seeming very much interested in this topic. Roy shrugged. How could he explain his work without giving away his alternate identity?

"Um… If I told you that I'd have to kill you?" Rachel let out a sharp bark of a laugh then said,

"Alright, fair enough."

"What about you? You mentioned college, right?" Roy asked, unconsciously moving his body closer to Rachel's on the park bench. She sighed.

"Yeah. I'll be graduating in the summer."

"That's great!" Roy was honestly impressed, he had never really bothered to put himself through college. He had been superhero-ing since he was young, after all. "What are you majoring in?"

"Journalism and Philosophy." Roy could have passed out after hearing that.

"That's incredible!" Rachel shrugged like it was no big deal. It may not have been for her, but to Roy it was certainly an achievement he believed she should be proud of.

"If you say so…" The pair grew quiet once again, though much more comfortably this time.

"So where do you work?" Roy asked and Rachel was quiet for a few seconds before answering.

"You know Grind Me, Eat Me on Third Street?" she asked and Roy wrinkled his nose trying to remember such a place.

"Uh, actually I've probably passed it a few times but never went inside."

"That's where I work."

"What is it?"

"It's a sort of coffee shop/bakery. It's pretty decent, despite the name. They play punk and metal music instead of that soft whatever-it-is that the other places put on. Kind of alternative." Rachel paused and a small smile came on her face, "I actually really like working there. I can pretty much choose what time I work on what days, my manager is completely cool, but she can be kind of intimidating, too sometimes."

"That's nice." Roy paused, coughed and added awkwardly, "Maybe I'll come see it now that you mentioned it…" Rachel shrugged.

"Richard comes to see me all the time." Why was Roy not surprised by this?

"That's… nice."

"I guess." They once again fell into a comfortable silence, the only sound coming from the occasional night jogger or the cars on the street. Moments passed and Roy chuckled lightly. Rachel gave him a side-glance, her brow perked curiously.

"You… seem a little different tonight."

Rachel shrugged, "Probably because I'm not working. I can be a little free." Roy wondered what she meant but that, and as if she had read his mind, she continued, "See, when I'm working with a client, patient, child, whatever you want to call it, I try to appear… _happier_ than normal, I guess. Children are extremely sensitive to people and their feelings. If you're upset, you child will be upset. If you're angry, your child will be angry. But when you're happy and your mood is light, your child will pick up on those feelings and also feel at ease." Roy nodded, truly taking it all in.

It explained a lot, after all.

When he first met her, Roy didn't know what to think and he was confused. But Lian was, of course, confused as well. She probably felt that Roy was uneasy and that made her uneasy which caused her to react… violently around Roy… Right? That's how it went, then? And while Roy continued to be upset with Lian for giving him a hard time, she continued to give him a hard time because he was upset with her. But after meeting someone like Rachel who took time to level out Lian's anger with her distress, since Dinah apparently wasn't enough, she started behaving better, which made Roy seem happier which in turn caused Lian to also be content.

It was a lot of information, but after figuring it all out, Roy felt like Albert Freaking Einstein.

"If I were to show up to an appointment in a bad mood, that would only be making my client's mood worse." Roy nodded.

"That makes sense…" He paused, seeming to remember something, "So then you just pretend to be all happy-sunshine?" Rachel shrugged.

"Not really. I've learned… to detach myself. Work, personal, play, I know how to behave in each situation, but I'll behave differently. Work at work is where I can relax and do my job. Simple, focused. Work with children I need to help them instead of helping myself. My focus is on them, and I leave all of my problems alone. When I'm dealing with my own personal business, of course, my main priority is myself, and my feelings. But play, I tend to let it all go and enjoy myself in the moment."

Roy soaked in all of Rachel's explanations and realized that he was learning quite a bit about her. More than her had ever thought he would know. A few weeks back, if you had told Roy that Rachel was a deeper person than she appeared to be, he would have laughed and walked away. But actually hearing these things from her… he almost felt privileged.

"Do you mind if I ask you a question, Roy?" Rachel asked softly.

"Shoot." Roy waited while Rachel seemed to be trying to figure out exactly how to phrase her question.

"Lian… her mother…" Roy immediately cringed and Rachel faltered, lowering her voice a little and speaking even more carefully. "Where… Where is she?" Roy didn't answer for about a good solid ten seconds and Rachel thought he had decided to ignore her when he replied,

"She's gone." He answered simply. How else could he have put it? She was simply not in his nor Lian's lives anymore. He thought for a while before asking, "Does Lian talk about her a lot?" Rachel sighed.

"No, surprisingly. She mentioned her once, back when I first met with her. Then I think she said something about her tonight? Like her mother gave her that shirt?" Roy nodded.

"Yeah…" he said, "but she's getting too big for it. I don't want to throw it away, but she can't keep wearing it forever. In a few months it won't fit her at all." Rachel seemed to sympathize and stopped talking. They both seemed to sigh simultaneously on accident and exchanged odd looks. A buzzing could be heard and Roy dug into his jeans pocket to retrieve his phone.

"_Hey, where are you_?" Dinah's voice came through the receiver and surprised Roy. He looked at the sky.

"Are you back already?" He asked, standing up and Rachel following him.

"_Already? What do you mean, I've been gone for like ninety minutes! I would have been back sooner, but Lian couldn't choose what stinking pajamas she wanted to take with her_."

"Jeez, are you serious?!" Roy immediately brought his wrist up only to remember he didn't wear wristwatches.

"_Yeah, she finally settled on the pink frog and blue sheep ones, though._" Dinah said and Roy rolled his eyes.

"Right, anyway, I'm at the park. I'll walk Rachel back to her car and you can pick me up in front of Daveand Buster's, alright?" Dinah gavean affirmativeanswer and hung up. Roy glanced at the time on his cell phone and nearly hissed. Dinah hadn't been lying.

"So, Dinah's back?" Roy nodded and motioned for them to head back. It was a quiet walk until Roy asked,

"Do you work tomorrow?" Rachel gave a coy smile and answered.

"Yes."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Okay, first of all, I don't know if there's actually a place called Grind Me, Eat Me, so if there is, then I don't own it. Second of all, I don't know if you can major in two different things in college or any of that business, so sorry if that's inaccurate also. Anyways… I had a few goals I was trying to obtain while writing this chapter.

My first goal for this chapter was to explain the whole issue with Roy and his issue with Raven/females in general.

My second goal was to get Raven a little more like herself.

My third goal was to get Roy and Rachel to understand each other a little more.

I would love to hear how you guys think I did. But you know what? I liked this chapter. Although, I did feel that things were a little more choppy than usual in this chapter. Did you notice it?

Anyways, thanks for reading and Happy Holidays.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Teen Titans.

**Author's Note**: I am extremely sorry for the wait.

* * *

**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Nine_

He stood across the street from the building that Rachel had told him about. It was just on the way to the park that he always took Lian and he absently wondered why he had never taken notice to it before. It was practically a hole-in-the-wall. But Rachel seemed a bit reserved so someplace like this probably suited her. Roy glanced up at the sign, marking the establishment as _Grind Me, Eat Me…_ A coffee bean cartoon stood next to the words "Grind Me", and a pink and purple cupcake cartoon stood next to the words "Eat Me". He supposed it was… appropriate… sort of…?

As Roy was crossing the street, he realized that he was suddenly nervous.

About what, though? There was nothing… to be nervous about, right?

Then again, this was sort of the first time he would be seeing her without Lian being present. He almost wished he hadn't let Dinah take her for the weekend, but then again it may appear odd for a man to take his daughter to a coffee shop so he could… see a girl? Was that what it would look like to outsiders? Probably. Did Roy care?

Good question. He wasn't sure of that, himself. He stopped just in front of the building and cracked his neck, shaking his arms out a little. When an elderly woman walked by and gave him a strange look he finally decided to just go in and say hi, check the place out, maybe figure out a little more about the woman who was spending time with his daughter. You know, like a good father.

Warmth hit Roy's senses the second he opened the door. It was warm inside, but it smelled warm, too. Coffee beans being ground, all that sugary junk they use to bake the pastries. It was a nice sensation to walk into. He stepped further into the shop and started taking in his surroundings.

_Owl City _could be heard playing softly in the background. The walls were painted a rather dulled and faded red on the bakery side, while on the coffee shop side there was a mural, it was unfinished, but from what Roy could tell… it looked like The Birth of Venus… only, instead of a shell, there was a coffee cup and the outlines of the bodies could be seen… But other than that, the wall was fairly blank. In spite of all that, Roy figured that the artist must have spent a lot of time on their work, and he decided that he would come back every now and then to see how the mural was progressing. There were tables and booths, all decorated in either red and black or a soft blue and rich brown. Ivory cushions sat on the stiff seats and upon closer inspection, Roy noticed that there were also light pink swirls.

"Hey, Mis_ter_! You planning on ordering any time soon or can I go take my break?" Roy turned, eyes wide with mortification, and he was met with a young man glaring at him. The guy couldn't be older than Roy, of that he was certain. His skin was lightly tanned and he had mussed up green hair. He glared at Roy with dark green eyes, his nose turned up in annoyance. His uniform appeared to be a black collared shirt with a green apron.

Roy walked up to the counter and gave an odd smile. The man looked at him strangely. "Uhhhh…" Roy cleared his throat and the guy seemed impatient, tapping his foot. A bell jingled indicating that someone had opened the door and Roy turned around to see who it was. Maybe it was Dick! Dick could probably help him not look like such a moron!

Sadly, though, it was not Dick.

Instead, it was some girl. She looked like she should still be in high school, she was so tiny. Her hair was a pale yellow and reached about halfway down her back, a chunk of it fell in her face and she brushed it away easily. Her eyes were a sparkling blue and they seemed to light up even more when her eyes moved in Roy's direction. Inwardly he winced as the girl walked toward him with a large grin on her face. Roy exhaled and smiled back at her. She gave him an odd look and continued to walk up to the counter.

"Hey, Gar, I thought you were on break now." The so called "Gar" rolled his eyes and snorted.

"I would be if this guy wasn't taking so long!" He turned back to Roy, "Seriously, dude, I've got a life, too, you know." Roy's cheeks felt like they were on fire for a moment and the girl spoke up again.

"Well, where's your coworkers? Vic and Raven and the others?" _Yes! Raven, where is she?_

"Well, Vic called, said he'd be coming in late and Rae… I think she's in the back doing inventory." Gar turned his head and shouted towards the back, "Hey, Rae! You almost done in there? I need a break!"

"Don't complain to me, Garfield. This was _supposed_ to be _your_ job, remember?" A familiar woman emerged from a back room and Roy tried to stop smiling like an idiot. Finally, someone he knew, hopefully he wouldn't feel like such a geek standing here not knowing what to say to these people.

Rachel's face lit up in surprise when she noticed Roy. She gave a sort of coy half-smile as she wiped her hands on her apron, which was blue, and greeted Roy.

"You came." Roy nodded dumbly and Garfield gave him yet another strange look.

"Whatever. I'm going on break." he stated and removed his apron, stepping around the counter, placing his arm around the blonde girl and walking out the door. Rachel and Roy watched the pair exit the door and watched as another couple came in. A tall, strong looking man with a prosthetic arm walked through the door with another petite girl, only this one had pink hair and eyes.

"Hey, Vic. Jinx." Roy's lip twitched. Had she just called that girl _Jinx_? _It's probably just a nickname…_ Roy thought as the pair walked behind the counter.

"Yeah, yeah." The girl answered as she moved into the backroom. Vic smiled and greeted Rachel politely while following the pink haired girl to the back. Rachel turned back to Roy.

"Were you ordering something?"

"What do you recommend?" Rachel shrugged and looked up at the menu board.

"Well…" She paused thoughtfully, "If you like sweet drinks, I'd recommend a caramel macchiato. Then there's espresso, which has a stronger coffee taste. But, if you're actually not much of a coffee drinker, there's always tea."

"Uh, how about just plain ol' coffee and a sugar cookie." Roy smiled genially, and Raven gave a curt nod. His order seemed to suit him in her eyes. Plain and simple. Not that Roy himself was plain or simple, it was just the fact that he was male. Women who walked in here often ordered something sweet with plenty of sugar and syrup. They ordered fancy pastries, if at all. Rarely did a woman come in here asking for a plain cup of coffee and a simple cookie.

Men, on the other hand, seemed to prefer less complicated drinks. If a man ordered caramel frappuccino, it honestly unnerved Rachel a little. She couldn't explain why. She stayed away from the sweetly complex drinks herself, preferring a nice cup of herbal tea. Richard had once mentioned that her choice in drink was a little unorthodox, but he couldn't see her drinking anything else. She had shrugged and dismissed it.

"There you go." Rachel gave an automatic smile as she handed Roy his things and he handed her his money. Roy took it, thanking Rachel and surveying the rest of the restaurant. Several people littered about here and there, reading books or newspapers, working on laptops, or listening to headphones. Roy loitered by the counter as Rachel wiped some of the tables.

Taking a bite of his cookie he said, "So this is your work, huh." He looked over at her, noticing she didn't seem to be paying him much attention. "I never would have pegged you for a barista." Roy smirked when he noticed Rachel's eyebrow quirk from the corner of his eye.

"Really. Why's that?" She asked, still not looking at him.

"Honestly, I had no idea what I expected you to do for a living." Roy took another finished off his cookie and took another swig of his drink, running his tongue over his lips thoughtfully. Rachel glanced at him finally.

"You do know that I'm not a professional psychologist or anything, right?" Roy nodded and waved his hand dismissively. Of course he'd known that, otherwise he would have paid her by now. Then he realized something.

Rachel was spending time with Lian for free. She was taking time out of her schedule to be with a child who she had no reason to really care for. He should find someway to repay her, he decided. "Why do you do it?"

"What? Counsel children?" She sat down at one of the tables and Roy joined her. He watched her stare up at the ceiling, probably trying to think of a response. "I don't really gain anything from doing it, do I?" She gave Roy and empty stare and he looked away. "I don't do it for profit. Even if someone offered to pay me, I probably wouldn't take the money." Roy took note of her comment about money and she continued.

"How many kids have you dealt with before?" Roy asked, genuinely curious.

"Not a lot. When I was seventeen, my neighbor's four-year-old son started throwing random tantrums for whatever reason and she couldn't understand him. While I was babysitting one night I was able to find out his reason for behaving that way and I spoke to his mother about it. They resolved the issue."

"Was it something bad?" Roy asked, wondering if his question was really appropriate.

"He missed his mother. He felt neglected. That's all. She spent more time with him and he stopped acting out." She had shrugged and Roy nodded.

"So then you do it just to do it?" Rachel shrugged again.

"I suppose. It's for them, the children, I mean. I don't think it's right for children to have to go through bad things. They shouldn't have to deal with the harshness of the world." She paused, then added, "at least not until they're an adult."

He took this in thoughtfully, "But how do they become an adult?" Roy believed that people _grew up_ by learning and experiencing life. If a child was sheltered all their life then how were they supposed to learn what was what? You can't hold a person's hand forever, and you can't try to either lest you risk screwing them up worse than the world ever could.

Rachel was silent.

"Yo, Rae, where's Gar?" The man Roy figured was named Vic came out from the back room, now donning a white apron, a chef's hat on his head.

"He's on his lunch break…"

"That's right, I remember." He took a moment to look around, then rubbing his chin he added, "Pretty slow today, huh." Rachel didn't answer but offered him a shrug.

The pink haired girl came out from the backroom and snorted, "Makes my job easier." She was carrying something wrapped in a black cloth, placing it on the side of the table. Unraveling the cloth it showed off a rather impressive array of art tools. Pencils, paintbrushes and some nearly empty tubes of paint. She grabbed a newspaper and flattened it out on the table, squirting some white paint on the paper and running a brush through it she began painting in an outline of a person. Roy watched interestedly.

"She's talented, don't you think?" Raven muttered quietly. Roy turned to look at her.

"She painted that whole thing?" Rachel nodded, "Huh." She also watched Jinx, her head resting on the back of her hands, propped up by her elbows.

The pair watched the girl paint until she turned around to wipe her forehead and caught them staring.

"Do you _need_ something?" She nearly spat at them and collected her things.

"Well, I'd better get back to work." Rachel mentioned and Roy nodded, standing up with her. "Maybe you'll come more often?" Rachel mentioned nonchalantly, glancing at Roy as she walked behind the counter.

"Sure, maybe on a day when Dick's here." Rachel nodded and bid him goodbye as Roy stepped out of the shop and into the cool crisp outside air.

Shivering once, he headed home with a sense of accomplishment for the day.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Guess what! Whether or not you care, I have decided to make a sort of side-story/prequel of sorts for Twenty Twenty. I don't know what the title will be yet, but it's going to basically be about how Raven and Robin met and their friendship and all that. Anyway, be sure to tell me what you think.

As for this chapter… I feel… okay about it. I kind of liked it… but then there were some parts, like the dialogue, that I had trouble with. Is it wierd to have Jinx as the artist? I thought about making it Bumblebee, but ended up going with Jinx since she seems like she could be a little more snooty than Bumblebee. And all that coffee stuff I got off a website describing Starbucks drinks, so yeah. I'm not a coffee drinker... I rather much dislike the stuff... My younger cousin can't seem to get enough. It worries me sometimes.

Anways!

Thanks for reading. And sorry again for the long wait.


	10. Chapter 10: Lian's Day with Dinah

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Teen Titans.

* * *

**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Ten: Lian's Day with Dinah_

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining. The birds were singing. The children were playing.

So why was Lian inside a clothing store putting on different dresses every two minutes, having a blonde woman coo and squeal about how adorable she looked in each particular dress.

"_So_ cute!" Dinah crooned and looked at her companion who was busy trying not to lose his sanity. "Isn't she cute, Oliver?" The man murmured something unintelligible and the woman ignored him, going back to staring at Lian. "Oh…" There was a sense of longing in Dinah's gaze that the little girl did not pick up on and no one expected her to. Whether she wanted to face it or not, Dinah _was not_ as young as she used to be and her days were numbered… She wanted a daughter so badly. If she were to bring the topic up with Oliver he would stammer and shout and blush and inevitably say no.

She was practically a Grandma now, with Lian running around. But she never had a kid of her own.

A wistful sigh escaped Dinah's lips as she grabbed Lian's hand and led her back into the dressing room. "How about we try the blue one now?"

"Blue?" Lian asked. Hadn't she already tried on _three_ blue ones?

"Mm-hmm." Dinah smiled as she helped Lian out of the old dress and into the new one. Lian didn't understand why Dinah was making her put these things on. She'd much rather be outside in the grass or in the sandbox right now. This place, while it was cool and ventilated, was indoors. Lian was missing out on her vitamin D.

"I really like that one." Dinah commented to herself, absently biting her knuckle. "Do you like it?" She asked the toddler who in turn gave the woman a bored stare.

"I think it suits you." Dinah smiled. Was she trying to convince Lian of something? Lian shrugged and looked at herself in the mirror. "If I buy it, will you model it for your daddy?" Of course she would model it for Roy. As soon as she saw the man again Dinah would squeal, take the girl behind closed doors and dress her in this same dress just for her daddy to see.

So yes. She would model it for her daddy.

"I'll buy it for you." Dinah helped the girl out of her clothes and the pair walked out of the dressing room. She looked around and a confused look crossed her face. "Where'd Oliver go?" At that moment her phone buzzed. "Oh." Flipping it open she stared at the screen silently as Lian watched the strange device in her hand. Her daddy had let her see one just like it once while they were in the car and Lian was throwing an exceptionally loud tantrum.

"That little..." It was a text message sent from Oliver stating that he had some things he remembered he had to take care of and caught the bus. This was his way of saying, _Woman, you bore me, I'm going home to watch TV and tinker with my arrows._ Dinah ground her teeth, then smiled when she realized that she didn't have Oliver holding her back anymore. "No matter." She grinned at no one in particular as she grabbed a few other things and went up front to pay for them.

Lian hoped they were almost finished when they got to the cashier's counter, but then that woman had to coo about how adorable Lian was, too.

"She's adorable! Is she yours?" The woman asked, her brown hair frizzy and fascinating to Lian. Her thick glasses were also something Lian wasn't accustomed to seeing and they also kept her attention.

"My granddaughter." Dinah stated proudly. Another woman behind Dinah made a comment.

"She's adorable! Hello, little girl, what's your name?" Lian was surprised to see a woman with so many... folds on her face. Like her skin didn't fit her. Her hair was white and her teeth were stained. Lian recognized the scent on her breath as the same stuff her daddy drank in the mornings.

"Tell her your name." Dinah mentioned lightly and Lian was forced to speak to this complete stranger.

"Lian." She said, mild discomfort washed over her and she wished she was up higher. All these tall people surrounding her were making her want to hide.

"What a cute name!"

"She has an angel's voice!"

"Doesn't she?" The three women continued to stare at Lian as though she were some interesting specimen under a microscope. Her eyes stung and she desperately wished Roy were here. He woudn't have tolerated these women staring like this. By now he would have told them that they had places to be and people to see in a tone that would get Roy a dirty look or two and they would be on their merry way. Lian tugged Dinah's pant leg and the woman seemed to finally get the picture. She cleared her throat, "How much did you say this was?"

"Oh! That'll be sixty-five ninety." Dinah whipped out a card and ran it through the machine, punched in a few numbers and they were on their way. They made it to the car and as she went to strap Lian in she gave the girl a hug. "I'm sorry if that made you uncomfortable. I really am." Dinah pulled away and looked at Lian, "Do you forgive me?"

Lian nodded and Dinah smiled while she finished buckling her into her car seat. "Let's see, where do you want to go? The park?"

"Yeah!" Lian sounded genuinly excited about the park and Dinah was surprised.

"You always go to the park. Are you sure that's where you want to go?" Lian nodded at her in the rearview mirror and Dinah shrugged. Pop music drifted out the window as they drove to the oh-so wonderful park. Lian practically drug Dinah until the playground was in sight and she let go, running as fast as her little legs would carry her to the slide. She was right, there were a lot of other children outside playing today, and some of them even ran up to meet Lian. A girl named Mira and another girl named Jennifer were regulars that Lian had befriended on one of the other days Rachel had accompanyed her onto the playground. A boy named Chris came up and tagged Lian's arm.

"You're it!" he shouted while surrying away from her, the other children followed his example and they engaged in a game of tag. Dinah smiled as she watched.

A woman came up next to her, "Are you Lian's mother?"

"Uh, grandmother, you could say." She turned and shook the woman's hand and the pair smiled at each other.

"I'm Donna." She had long dark hair pulled back into a high ponytail, blue eyes and star earrings.

"Dinah." The two shook hands.

"I'm Jennifer's mother." She stated as she pointed out the young girl. Dinah nodded and the two began conversing about different things, varrying from how cute one's haircut was to who liked who's shoes. They continued to talk until their respective children came up complaining about being tired. It was sunset and Lian was hungry.

"It was so nice meeting you." The two women went their seperate ways and Dinah asked how Lian's day was. The girl told her about how Jennifer had taught her about a game called freeze tag which was like tag only you froze when you got tagged. It was a lot of fun, then they played hide and seek and Lian was really good at that game because no one ever found her until the game was over. Before Dinah knew it, Lian was a snoring heap on her shoulder. She wondered if it was a good idea to let her sleep without eating and decided to make dinner at her house that way she could eat if she woke up.

On the drive home Dinah thought about what kinds of choice words she would give her man when she saw him.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Thus concludes Lian's Day with Dinah. I thought about making this a one-shot, but then I didn't know if that was such a good idea since neither Lian nor Dinah were in the Teen Titans cartoon. So I decided to put it in here instead. And while this isn't such an important part of the story, it was pretty nice to write all the same. (Although the conversation between Donna and Dinah was very much lacking.)

I feel like the actual story has gotten… excessively slow. So I did this to prep myself for the real chapter I'm working on. Hopefully it will be more action-y than the past few chapters which have basically been focusing on Rachel and Roy's relationship.

Thank you so much for reading.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Teen Titans.

* * *

**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Eleven_

The night was silent.

_CRASH!!_

Well, it _had_ been silent.

"Keep it down, ya morons!" Three dark figures made their way through the freshly "opened" window of the local GameStop.

"Us? You're the one shouting!" Two male voices could be heard bickering with one another until another voice piped up.

"Shut up, already, both of you!" Undeniably female, a little whiny sounding, actually. The two men stopped at once and all three instantly began raiding the shop.

"So, uh, what exactly are we looking for?" the first male asked, his voice a little dumb sounding compared to his companions.

"Microchips." A second male supplied, his voice rough and curt.

"Microchips… right. Microchips. Microchips…" The first man repeated to himself over and over while the girl hissed,

"Do they even keep microchips at GameStop?" the second man pulled something off a top shelf.

"Probably in game consoles and stuff." He answered, no longer bothering to be quiet. No alarms had gone off and he was beginning to feel comfortable with their action.

"Right, game consoles…" she muttered. Video games had never been her thing and she wasn't exactly sure what he meant.

"Is this one?" the first man asked again. In his hand a tiny green square of metal and wired circuitry sat as the other two gathered around to gawk at it.

"…I think so." The girl mentioned and the second guy sneered.

"Not bad." he clapped the other man on the back, who in turn gave him a grin filled with crooked and chipped teeth. The first man grimaced.

"So," the girl ran a hand through her hair, her high voice immediately catching the attention of her companions, "is that it? Are we done? Can we go?"

The two men stared, blinked, then shrugged.

"That was easy enough." One scoffed as each of them turned to crawl back out through the broken window.

Upon seeing a shadow of a tall figure leaning against the parking meter just outside the store they froze.

"Who the hell're you?!" The man with chipped teeth demanded. The figure slowly and lazily pushed himself off the meter and stood straight, his hands crossed over his chest. He sighed.

"I, ah… I take it you guys are new to this whole 'robbing a store' thing, huh?" he asked, his tone between indifference and amusement.

The woman hissed, "Shut up! Who do you think you are?!" The figure sighed again.

_Were they serious? They had no idea who he was?_

With one final bored sigh and a peeved look in his eye, Arsenal drew his bow, took an arrow out of its quiver and aimed slowly and surely at the three clueless fools. They in turn all panicked, "He's got a bow and arrow! He's crazy! Run!" Where were they supposed to go when they were still inside the store and Arsenal was blocking their only exit? He released the bowstring and watched a net explode around the two men, ensnaring them easily. The woman, on the other hand, with quicker reflexes managed to let out a yelp and dive behind a display case just in time to avoid being captured.

_Dumb luck._ Arsenal thought, though this would make things a little more annoyingly troublesome if he didn't get her soon. Arsenal stepped cautiously through the window, idly wondering what was taking the cops so long to get there, and moved past the two ensnared men on the floor, choosing to ignore their curses and remarks.

She was so easy to hear, her sharp breathing, whimpering, all of it. She had no idea what she was doing and was scared out of her mind. The woman stayed behind the bookshelf, her knees drawn to her chest as she sweat bullets. Arsenal looked at her and felt sorry. She probably didn't know what she was getting herself into when she decided to do this.

"So," he mentioned casually, watching the girl tense as she slowly craned her neck to face him. She screamed again and tried to crawl away. Arsenal watched her make a break for the window and grimaced as she sliced her thigh trying to get out hastily. He jogged after her, diving through the window and rolling to land on one knee. His bow drawn once again he readied another arrow. He shot.

And this time he hit his target. She let out a cry as she tumbled to the ground, also caught in a net and tried squirming away. Arsenal strode up to her, and hearing him close in on her she began babbling, "No! No! Please don't hurt me! I needed the money! I'm sorry!" Arsenal picked her up and began carrying her back to the store, only half-listening to her ramblings about how sorry she was. He placed her down by the entrance, "Please! Please don't put me in jail! I can't go to jail! I'm sorry!" she sobbed. "We needed the money…" Arsenal's jaw was taught as he picked up the other two and pulled them outside to wait for the police to come pick them up.

All three were a mess of snot and tears, sobs and cries, Arsenal grimaced. He felt a little sorry for them, really. Just a couple of poor blokes that got caught up in something stupid and careless. Maybe they would get lucky and the jury would go easy on them. He briskly looked around and wondered how no one had been woken up or come out to see what was happening yet.

He sighed. It must have been about two in the morning and he was tired. After he had left Rachel's work he had gone to the gym for some much needed working out. Then, since he was bored, there was nothing better to do, and because he hadn't done it in a while, he decided to go on patrol, expecting it to be another uneventful night. And he was right, for the most part. He was just on his way home when he heard the window crash and decided to check it out. Perhaps it was a good thing he did…

"For crying out loud!" one of men cried hysterically, "it was just one microchip! We didn't touch the cash! Please, let us go, mister! We'll never do it again!"

Oh, he believed that. Curiously Arsenal looked back into the shop. Did they really not touch the cash register? After muttering a "stay here" he wandered back into the shop. Ignoring the crunch of glass beneath his boots he wandered over to the pay counter and frowned.

They were right. The money had not been touched… But if that were the case then…

Rushing back out into the street, Arsenal said in a serious and hard tone, "What do you keep talking about 'you needed the money'? What did you steal?"

"A microchip! That's it! You made me drop it! Go look for yourself." Arsenal looked back into the store, and although it was hard to see in the dark he caught a glimpse of something that shone briefly on the ground and went to pick it up. Indeed, a microchip. He hadn't lied. A tiny one at that, too. He walked back to continue questioning the thieves.

"This is it?" They all nodded, "What did you want with this?" Arsenal sounded genuinely perplexed, and he was. The three sort of responded with "Um…" and "Well…"

"_What_ did you _want_ this for?" Arsenal crouched to their level, suddenly hearing sirens somewhere in the distance, he noted the looks of panic on each of the three's faces.

"Well… he told us to break into an electronics store, see? He said steal a microchip, but nothing else!" The girl spoke, her voice getting higher and more rushed as the sirens got louder. They were right around the corner now… "So we did! He said he'd pay us!" The cops were skidding to a halt, "We needed the money…!" they all began sobbing again and Arsenal realized they left out an important part of the story.

"Wait, who's he?!" A cop was getting out the car, "Tell me!" he whispered frantically, but instead they all crowed and cried, tears and mucus everywhere, they were a mess.

A short police officer jogged up to Arsenal, a sorry smile on his face, "Uh, sorry it took so long to get here… The alarm at the station didn't go off and we didn't even know what was happening until we got a call from one of the neighbors complaining about a couple noisemakers. He seemed to size up the three criminals and frowned. They were loud and scared and… looking mighty pathetic.

"Please don't take us to jail!" The pleaded one final time as two other officers surrounded them and herded them into the back seat of their vehicles, red and blue lights still flashing.

"So, uh… did they say anything…?" Arsenal frowned, "How much did they take?"

"This." he placed the item in the officer's outstretched hand and stepped back. The man inspected the little piece of technology and snorted.

"That's it?" Arsenal nodded solemnly. "Well, I'll be." He chuckled and placed the evidence in a pouch for safe keeping. He looked back at Arsenal who easily stood six inches taller than his and asked, "Did they say anything? Motivation?"

Arsenal waited for a second, then responded, "No. Nothing." The officer sighed, "They cried and screamed about how they were sorry and didn't want to go to jail… if that helps." Arsenal tried, shrugging but the officer was already walking back to his car.

"Thanks anyway, Arsenal." He gave one last dismissive wave and drove off with the other two cars that had accompanied him. Arsenal stood in the same place they left him.

_He said steal a microchip and nothing else!_

Arsenal grimaced.

_He said he'd pay us._

Who was _he_? Arsenal sighed. Just what he needed. A freaking mystery.

"Wonderful."

_The next morning…_

Roy sat at the kitchen table, shadows under his eyes as he dully drank his coffee. Lian watched him curiously. He stared back at her and she gave a sort of smile and took a bite of her toast. Chewing she pointed to her eye and pointed to Roy's. He sighed.

"Daddy's tired." Lian nodded, looking like she understood and took another bite of her toast. "How was your stay at Grandma's house?" Lian shrugged indifferently. He nodded, taking another drink of his coffee and exhaling. "She said you got a new dress you want to show me." He could have laughed at how quickly Lian's expression changed from tranquil to annoyed. She glared at her plate, growled and left the table. She came back a few minutes later carrying the blue dress with her.

It was… cute… That's what Roy assumed a woman would think if they saw it. He was not really obligated to make those kinds of decisions. It looked like it was more for spring than the upcoming winter, and Roy hoped she wouldn't grow out of it by then. "Do you like it?"

Lian quietly stared at him before shaking her head slowly. Roy nodded. He thought not. From what he could tell, Lian was going to be a tomboy when she got older. Things like dresses and bows didn't interest Lian, she felt much more comfortable in jeans and overalls. Inwardly he hoped that would make it easier along the road as she got older and into the teen years.

Lian had put the dress on one of the couches and scrambled back into her chair to finish her breakfast which consisted of toast and strawberries and cream oatmeal. Roy sat back and stretched, glancing at the microwave clock. He looked back at his daughter, "So what do you wanna do today?"

"I dunno." Lian answered quietly. Roy thought for a second.

His eyes brightened, "You want to go to a movie?" Lian shrugged.

"Ok."

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**Author's Note:** Completely lame way to end a chapter, I know. I probably disappointed all of you with the lack of Raven in this chapter. You all sounded so excited about that, and I'm sorry! That first scene took way longer than I expected it to and I didn't really know how to transition smoothly from all of that to a Rae/Roy scene. I had trouble doing the little conversation between Lian and Roy, but I was trying to show that Lian is _far_ less hostile than she was not terribly long ago. How was this chapter? Like I said, probably a disappointment, huh? Raven might not be in the next chapter either. I'm thinking about bringing in Kori... But if I don't bring Kori in, Raven will definitely be in it, alright?

Oh yeah! That side story I mentioned a while ago (Wow, a whole _one_ person supplied me with feedback on that, a big thanks to Star Melody, by the way.), I have decided to title it: In the Dark.

Here's the summary:

_Robin watched his parents die. Raven knew her mother didn't love her. Those were the secrets they kept in the dark._

Sound good? Sound lame? Have any better ideas? Opinions? Let me know.

Anyways, thanks for reading.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: **God, I feel horrible... it's been months. I am _so_ sorry. I didn't even really _realize_ how long it had been... I feel awful. I don't blame you if you hate me... Sorry. Since it's been so long, here's a little refresher:

Roy (Speedy/Arsenal) came into custody of his daughter Lian, she's about three years old? She was a little monster, so Dick (Nightwing) offered to introduce Roy to his friend, Raven/Rachel. At first Roy doesn't really trust Rachel but she still helps Lian get over herself and start behaving and listening to Roy. Roy's kind of depressed a little about Cheshire, his former lover. Rachel _might_ have a crush on Roy, and Roy _might_ be starting to take a liking to Rachel. Roy found out where Rachel works and has been frequenting there lately. Which brings us here... I think.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Teen Titans.

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**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Twelve_

"_Seriously_?" Roy couldn't decide whether he should say something or merely snicker.

"Ah… what do you mean?" He chose to say something. The look on Dinah's face was just a little too disbelieving and if he laughed she might think he were playing some prank.

"She works _here_? Rachel. As in Rachel Roth… We are talking about the same person, right?"

Roy snorted, "Well, yeah. Why is that so surprising?" It had been almost a week since he had last seen Rachel and he was beginning to wonder if she was supposed to see Lian any time soon.

Speaking of which, Lian was currently playing with a bird feather she must have found somewhere on the ground and Roy considered smacking it out of her hands… but she looked so amused… and she _was_ being quiet… but what about the _germs_?

"Nothing. Nothing at all… Just… I mean, the _name_. Who…?" Dinah sputtered for a bit and Lian peered at her curiously, "Whatever. It doesn't matter." She began walking, "Let's go." Roy smiled and followed her, tugging Lian along gently at his side.

The door made a bell noise as the trio entered the coffee shop and someone was immediately alerted to their presence. The shop was busier than the last time Roy was there.

"Ugh, you again?" Roy's eye twitched when he heard the oddly familiar voice call out. His green eyes met with a pair of darker ones and he frowned. That little twerp again?

"Gar! Why don't you go in the back and do something less annoying!" Jinx shouted and threw a white cloth at said boy. She pushed him aside and turned to Roy, a unnervingly happy looking smile on her face. "Are you ready to order?"

"Uh… actually, I was just--"

"He's here for _Ra-ven_." Gar snorted, "Well, guess what! She's not here today! So you can leave n--"

"Garfield!" Jinx hissed and kicked the boy. He yelped once, glaring at the girl who glared right back. After a few seconds Gar gave up and turned to glare swiftly at Roy before stomping into the back room.

"So, what'll it be?" Jinx asked in her odd voice with her strange smile… Roy fought back a twitch.

"Um, I--"

"I'll have a Caramel Brulee Crème, one chocolate chip cookie, a small apple juice and a cupcake." Dinah ordered and Roy sighed.

"Ah… just a plain coffee. Thanks." Jinx rang them up, Roy paid and left with Dinah to find a table after getting his receipt. Dinah looked around and smirked.

"I kinda like this place, actually." she nodded approvingly. A few minutes later, Jinx called Roy's number and he fetched their purchases.

Being the excitable child she was, Lian went crazy on the cupcake a little too quickly and made a bigger mess that Roy would have liked.

"Go get me some napkins." Dinah ordered and Roy went to fulfill his task.

He was approaching the counter when he heard a feminine voice say, "Excuse me, sir?" Roy could tell by the sound of her voice that she was probably attractive, and he wasn't sure if he should be happy or uneasy about it. "Sir?" she tapped his shoulder.

Roy idly wondered if this woman were going to complain about his daughter making a mess and ask if he could take her out of the shop. How would he reply to that?

"Ah, yes?" He turned around slowly, after grabbing a few napkins, to find a taller than average woman with a moderately heavy tan, long gorgeous red hair, green sparkling eyes, and a _magnificent_ body watching him. Roy suspected she might be some sort of exercise instructor, yoga perhaps?

"I am looking for the sweetening? Where might I find it?"

Sweetening? Sweetener? Sugar? Was she looking for sugar?

Roy swiftly swiped a few sugar packets and handed them to the woman. "Here."

"Oh, thank you!" The woman smiled and placed the drink Roy hadn't noticed on the counter. She smiled happily as she poured the sugar into her black coffee and stirred, taking a test sip. She frowned and asked Roy for more.

He complied, giving her a strange look after she had repeated the process and still asked for more.

...Nineteen packets of sugar... it took _nineteen_ packets of sugar before she was satisfied with the taste.

"Thank you very much. My name is Kori Anders." Roy nodded, shaking her hand.

"Roy Harper."

"I cannot thank you enough, Roy Harper." _It was just some sugar..._ "You see, I just recently moved here and a lot of things in this country are still very new to me. I would have been lost without you."

Roy wondered if this woman were for real or not. "Where did you previously live?"

"A very tiny country known as Tamaran in Europe. I was a model there until some troubles arose and I was... let go."

"I'm sorry to hear that." _I knew it! I knew she was a model!_

"Oh, don't be. It has given me much time to come and explore what it is like to live _here_. It's a wonderful place, really. Everything is so shiny."

Roy nodded, not really sure what she meant by "shiny".

"Oh! Please, do tell me what places you reccommend I see." Kori motioned for Roy to come sit with her at her table and Roy froze.

"Really?" This couldn't be happening...

"Oh yes, I would appreciate it very much!" Roy nodded and slowly followed Kori back to her table in a daze. "I have already seen..." She trailed off, staring behind Roy and he turned to see why.

He had forgotten about Dinah.

"Roy, who's this?"

Roy had lived long enough to know what a pissed off woman looked like.

She looked like how Dinah Drake looked right now.

"She's just my new friend, Kori Anders. Kori, this is Dinah, my--"

"Girlfriend." Roy blanched as Dinah shook a clueless Kori's hand.

"What!? No! She's not! She's actually my--"

"Fiance."

"Stop it! She's lying! Don't listen to her, Kori. That's gross, she's like fifty." Dinah elbowed Roy in the ribs, an angry smirk on her face.

"He likes older women."

"Stop saying that! Really, Kori, she's just--" Roy tried to explain but froze when Dinah started crying loudly. By this time everyone in the small coffee shop was staring at him, including a snickering Garfield.

"Oh, Roy! How can you say that! You told me you wanted to marry me, grow old together, and have even more children! We already have little Lian!"

"Dinah! First of all, you're already old! Second-" Roy wondered if saying that Dinah was already old was a good idea when a dark malicious gleam appeared in her eyes.

"You have a daughter?" It was over... Roy was never going to have a chance like this again... Say goodbye to his hopes of actually being friends with a real live model...

Lian stepped forward from behind Dinah, a curious and innocent look on her face. Roy had no way of hiding that she was his child, and he waited for Kori to stand up, make some lame excuse for leaving, then make a hasty exit, never to see him again. He sighed, "Yeah, she's..."

"She's adorable!" Kori scooped Lian up and hugged her. Was that really appropriate? "What is your name, little one?" Lian introduced herself quietly and shyly while Roy and Dinah, and pretty much the rest of the shop stared in puzzlement at the strange spectacle that had taken place before them on this supposedly quaint day. Kori continued to talk sweetly with Lian and Dinah sighed, "Listen, Kori was it?" said woman nodded and Dinah rubbed her shoulder tiredly, "I'm not Lian's mom. Or Roy's fiance... And you seem like a nice girl and all, but Roy's already sort of in a relationship with a girl who works here..."

"Oh... _Oh_. Oh! I see, no, no. You misunderstand. Roy Harper was simply helping me out. I too am in a relationship. Thank you for your concern though." _What concern? _Roy wondered as Kori placed Lian down and began explaining to Dinah what she and Roy had _really_ been talking about. Everyone else in the small cafe had turned back to their own business by now.

_Roy's already sort of in a relationship with a girl who works here..._ What was that supposed to mean?!

"She better not have been talking about Rachel..." Roy muttered as he picked up Lian to place her in bed that night. "How about you, Lian. What do you think of Miss Rachel?"

"She's nice." Lian smiled.

Roy smiled back, "Yeah. I guess she is nice."

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**Author's Note: **Go take my poll, please. It concerns this story. If you thought this chapter was crap, I understand. I actually wrote this some time ago and didn't finish it until recently, then didn't even post it until today. I'm a bad person, I know.

I always feel apprehensive when writing Starfire because her pattern of speech isn't normal. She uses mixed up phrases and it always throws me off. I know her back story probably sounds super lame, but I couldn't think of anything else... The drink Dinah orders is one from a Starbucks menu and I do not own any of that…

Thank you so much for reading.


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: **Some of you were happy that Starfire finally made her entrance, others were a little disappointed… But anyways, Xaphrin mentioned something important: What does she have to do with the Rae/Roy relationship building?

Originally it was my goal to have Roy run into Starfire at the café and they would talk. Roy would sort of ask Starfire advice about this and that, Starfire would point Roy in the right direction (asking Raven out, or something like that). That was my plan… but things got messed up, I ended up bringing Dinah and Lian in and they made it difficult for Roy and Starfire to have this… moment. It's my fault, totally, but I knew I needed to get Kori in here soon, or else I wouldn't know where else to introduce her from, if that makes sense.

I decided to answer the question like this, just in case anyone else was wondering.

And yes, it's been forever since we last saw Rachel! I miss her too, so she's gonna make an appearance in this chapter, okay? Please enjoy.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Teen Titans.

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**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Thirteen_

It was quiet as Lian padded through the apartment, in search of the man who was supposed to have made her breakfast by now... For some reason he wasn't in his room.

That was where he normally was when he wasn't up before her... So where was he? She checked the living room, but he wasn't there either... The bathroom was empty...

With a huff, Lian decided to go into the kitchen and forage for food herself...

But she ended up finding her daddy there instead. He was indeed still asleep... or dead. He sat in a stool with his head lying on the counter. He wasn't moving... he didn't even look like he was _breathing_. Carefully, Lian tiptoed up to him, trying to see his face. Dead people always had their tongues sticking out, at least in the cartoons. So real life should be the same, right? Lian stretched as much as she could, a little afraid of what she might see.

Roy sat up suddenly and Lian screamed.

Father and child stared at each other for the longest time with startled expressions before Roy blinked and asked what she was doing.

"I'm hungry." Lian stated quietly. Roy looked at the microwave clock, a little surprised that it was nine o'clock already. Roy opened the fridge, gingerly sniffing the milk before throwing it out. _So cereal's out of the question..._He looked for eggs, only finding two. He looked for bread, finding none. Roy finally looked for oatmeal, and was unsurprised when he found none, considering he didn't particularly care for the stuff.

"How about we go out?"

During the car ride to some local cafe, Lian piped up, "Why were you in the kitchen?" her tone genuinely curious.

"I, ah... I woke up early this morning... and couldn't get back to sleep, so I went and read the paper in the kitchen." Roy was a little embarrassed that he had been caught off guard. Why had Lian screamed? She was probably just as startled as he was.

Walking into the small homey diner, Roy was reminded of something.

This is the same place Dick had first told him about Rachel.

Speaking of which, how long has it been since she last met with Lian? He should probably give her a call, to see about their next appointment...

"Lian, please don't play with your food." Lian looked up at Roy, who gave her a mildly disapproving gaze. She stuck her tongue out before turning and eating her food properly. Roy thought back, _Just a few months ago she would have screamed and threw something at me._ It was actually a little incredible that she had come this far. _Thanks to Rachel. _"Hmm."

After leaving the diner, Roy strapped Lian in to her car-seat, then sat in the car with her as he made a call. "Hello, Rachel? ...Yeah, yeah, it's me Roy. Um... I was wondering... if you were still, uh," How should he put this? "seeing Lian?" It felt weird to call about this, and he couldn't explain why. "Um... when's a good time for you?" _Anytime, like she always says, _"Right now? ...Really? Um, okay. The park?" Roy looked back to see Lian watching something outside the window, "All right, then. See you in a bit." He hung up.

Roy wondered idly, on his drive over to the park, if Rachel lived nearby. He wondered if today was her day off, did her boss really not care? Was her boss "that cool" with all of it? Did Rachel lie? Did she tell her boss that she had some chronic illness? Or did she get her friends from work to cover for her? There was still quite a bit that Roy didn't know about Rachel... and he was letting this woman see his daughter?

Wait. Why was Roy getting worked up over this now? What did it matter? Lian was acting much better, and she never once mentioned anything about Rachel hurting her in any way... so what's up? Roy decided that if was going to keep knowing Rachel, then he should at least know her a little better... but how could he tell her that?

"Rachel, if you and I are going to continue being acquaintances, I think it's time you told me a little bit more about your personal life." Lian giggled and Roy shook his head, "That just won't do." It's not like he was an open book himself, after all. What kind of environment was appropriate for getting to know someone better?

Roy parked the car and freed Lian from her booster-seat confines when Rachel walked up, a pleasant smile on her face as she greeted Lian. But instead of Lian stopping to talk with Rachel, she darted passed her and onto the jungle gym with three other children. "Ah, sorry. I'll go get her," Roy started but Rachel waved her hand.

"It's fine." Instead the pair sat on a bench facing the playground, Lian laughing and playing with other children, not paying them any attention. Roy felt antsy. This was it. His chance to talk to Rachel, one-on-one. The last time they had this opportunity, he learned a lot about Rachel. Would he learn even more this time?

"So..." Rachel looked at him from the corner of her eye, "Thank you." Rachel turned to face him, her expression telling Roy that this wasn't what she had been expecting. "You've really helped a lot with Lian and she's... she's _happier._" Roy looked at the girl who was laughing loudly as she chased another child in a game of tag, then thought about the child she had been before, the one who didn't make friends... the same one who tortured caterpillars on the sidewalk.

"I want to make it up to you." Roy said suddenly, not completely registering the words before they were out of his mouth. Rachel eyed him suspiciously, warily. "I want to take you somewhere. Anywhere you want. Your pick."

"No." Rachel stated solidly, like she wasn't even going to consider it, and Roy frowned.

"Come on, Rachel. What could you possibly lose from going out with me?" Perhaps that was the wrong choice of words, Roy decided after Rachel glared at him.

"_No_." She was still giving Roy that look. "It's unnecessary."

Roy was undettered. "I _insist_."

"No, _I_ insist." Why was she being so difficult about this? Roy _knew_ he was not _that_ repulsive.

He pleaded, "Look, Rachel. I need to do this. I would feel horrible if I didn't pay you back in some way."

"So this is more for you than me." Rachel stated, her gaze sharp and accusing.

Roy shrugged it off, "Well, yeah. If you want to put it like that, _yes_." He sighed, "It's not like I'm asking you out on a date, Rachel. This is different. Don't even think of it as a date. Think of it as... collecting payment." Rachel still eyed him carefully, but at least now she seemed to consider the offer.

Honestly though, when was the last time Rachel went out to a nice restaurant, with a waiting list, and stuffy waiters, and _expensive_ appetizers? What _did_ she have to lose?

"You'll take me wherever I want?" Roy nodded eagerly and Raven prayed she wouldn't somehow regret this later, "Fine. But it's not a date, got it, _Harper_?"

"Whatever you say, _Roth._"

* * *

**Author's Note: **All right! Everything is taken care of! Sort of... I wrote out my notes in better detail, and there should be twenty chapters (if things go as planned), although chapter twenty will be more of an epilogue (kinda like how chapter one is kinda like a prologue if you think about it). So, since I have eveything written out, and if I want to follow this outline, I can't promise every chapter will be as long as I said I would try to make them. Please forgive me! I'm sorry... But, after writing all the notes for this story down yesterday I thought about making a sequel... MAYBE! It's just a tiny little thought in my head right now... but I think I might be able to do something with it... Maybe. If I do decide to make a sequel, it wouldn't be for a while since I have to finish my other stories and In the Dark first...

_Thank you so much for reading!_


	14. Incomplete Chapter 14 with Note plz read

**! ! WARNING ! !**

Okay, ready for the warning? Here it is. This chapter is gonna suck. Wanna know why? Because it is incomplete. No, I'm not giving up on this story, but I have a big ol' long story to tell you after you finish reading all this, okay? So go ahead and read what I have for you so far, but please be sure to read the (unbelievably long) author's note at the end, okay? Thank you. (I'm sorry!)

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Teen Titans.

* * *

**Twenty Twenty**

_Chapter Fourteen__ [incomplete]_

"_Carmandie's_? You're going to _Carmandie's_? You're letting him take you to _Carmandie's_?" Raven turned and glared at the man lying on her couch, watching her put on makeup.

"Yes. Is there a problem with that?" she snapped.

Dick shrugged, "Well, I mean… Isn't that a little fancy and… _expensive_ for a first date?"

"It's not a date!"

Dick scoffed, "Right, right. I think you mentioned that earlier." He turned on the TV and ignored the dirty looks Raven kept throwing at him.

"Besides, it's not like it was _his_ idea. _I_ wanted to go to Carmandie's." Dick sat up at that.

"Why?"

Raven set down her brush and sighed, "I don't know… How often do I get to go to places like that? I guess… I just wanted to be a little…"

"Selfish for once?" Raven's silence was enough of an answer, he supposed. Dick sighed.

"I'm still not so sure this is a good idea." Raven looked at him, honestly curious, "I'm just saying."

"What are you saying, exactly?" Raven asked, her tone carrying a hint of annoyance.

"It seems like he's going through a lot of trouble to please you… and well, Roy doesn't exactly have the best track record when it comes to relationships." Dick opened his mouth to continue, but Raven cut him off.

"All right, Dick? Before you start going off on things you don't understand, let me explain it to you. This is not a date. This is _payment_. Roy feels like he owes me, and I'm making the most of it. So sue me." Dick watched her closely and didn't say anything else until she was about to leave.

"You look nice." He remarked, walking her to the door.

"Thank you. And thanks for watching Sabbath tonight." The feline stretched lazily on the couch next to where Dick had been sitting.

"No problem. Oh, and if he tries getting into your pants, don't hesitate to call me, I'll be right over to-"

"Kick his ass, I know. I've got you on speed dial." Raven chuckled and gave Dick one last hug before hurrying down to her car. Roy was supposed to meet her at the restaurant because… well, it just seemed easier… and less date-like.

Speaking of Roy, he was already at the restaurant, arguing with the hostess that he did, _indeed_, have a reservation. "Look, lady. I called here. _Two weeks ago_. I spoke with Margot. _Margot_. About this reservation. I set it for _today_ at _eight o'clock_. There has to be _something_ there with the name _Harper_ on it."

The hostess glared hard at Roy, sick of him and sick of the line that was complaining behind him. She checked, for the _third_ time, to see if there was a reservation for _Harper_. "Damn Margot and her ridiculous handwriting." she muttered under her breath. Roy didn't care if Margot had poor penmanship, he _needed_ to get into this restaurant, whether "Becky" liked it or not. And he would. One way or another, he would. It was his promise to Rachel.

With a final huff, Becky turned the book toward Roy and glared, pointing to a scribble. "Does that look like Harper to you?" She barked and Roy wrinkled his nose. All that was legible was H and er… So sure, why not.

"Yeah, as a matter of fact, it does." Becky slammed the book closed, hate never leaving her eyes.

"Is your date here?" She asked, her tone snooty as she looked around Roy, satisfied that he seemed alone.

"No, she's on her way."

"Sorry, can't let you in if your date's not present. Next!"

"Says who?" Roy held his hand up to the young couple behind him. Since when was this a rule?

Becky sneered, "Mister Harper, please don't make me call security." Roy was about to tell this woman off, when his "date" finally arrived.

"Jeez, Roy. You're not even in the restaurant and they're _already_ threatening to call security on you." Rachel chuckled when Roy glared at her, anger rolling off him in waves. She smirked lightly.

"There, _Becky_! This is my date, she's here. Let us in." Becky looked murderous as she almost spat, "Right this way."

Rachel wondered what exactly had conspired before she arrived to put these two in such foul moods. It was making her skin crawl.

After Becky sat Rachel and Roy down at a booth, she spoke up, "So… what exactly did you do to piss that lady off, anyway?" Roy sighed exasperatedly and shook his head.

"You're lucky I'm doing this for you."

"Payment." Rachel waggled her finger in his face, picking up the menu and giving it a once over. She got a sly look in her eye that made Roy feel wary. While still eying her he picked up the menu, and gave it a quick glance. Then nearly collapsed. He knew the prices were high, but he didn't know they were _that_ high! Roy quietly sighed, looks like he and Lian would be living on a serious budget for the next couple weeks till his next paycheck rolled in…

"So, Roy. What will you be having?"

* * *

**Author's Note:** So, this part right here was easy enough to write. But then life happened, and it's gonna be a long story and I'm sorry for it, but I kinda have to explain it to you anyway.

So, I uploaded chapter 13 almost 6 months ago. I was shocked when I realized how long it's actually been (I'm sorry). I have an excuse, but it's pretty weak. Ok. Here goes. For a long while, my life was hectic. I was in danger of getting kicked out of school because my grades were bad, and the teachers thought I didn't care. It felt like everybody was trying to make me just give up and had no hope in me and it made me super depressed, (Sorry if this sounds like a sob story). But I'm a proud person, and I don't normally let what others say bother me. But this just absolutely broke me.

Eventually I got over the depression and went into the pissed off stage. I don't know why I let it hit me so hard, and I got mad for actually forgetting _who I was_, for even _considering_ dropping out. And it frustrated me that all these people were trying to force it on me. So I got my old stubborn attitude back, walked into the school, salvaged whatever I could. I ended up passing. But I still left the school. But that's okay. I'm attending a new school that is freaking AMAZING. I LOVE my new counselor, he is the most amazing counselor in the world, and 5/6 of my teachers are awesome.

I worked all summer in my grandpa's bakery (it was pretty dang cool, but uber repetitive), which left very little time for recreational activities. Eventually September rolls around and I think, Man, I haven't worked on my stories lately, have I? So I get to working on a few of them, while keeping my grades up at my new school, and actually having a decent social life. And guess what. My computer goes stupid and totally crashes. We need to update the system. So my step-dad calls the day of this special updating (to windows 7) to ask if there's anything I'd like to save from the old files (I'm not at home). I think for a bit, and remember all of my awesome pictures I've collected but figure I can find them later and tell him to go ahead… I had just about completely forgotten about my stories until a week later when I try to work on them. All of the outlines for my stories… are gone. I'm really upset with myself for that. I remember most of what was supposed to happen in Twenty Twenty, and that's not really the problem, but… just the fact that… All of my work… _Sigh_.

So, here's the problem folks: I'm mostly just stuck on chapter 14. I have an idea how I want the chapter to _end_, and I already have the beginning worked out (what you just read), but I can't think of how I want the actual date to go (yes, they were on a date in case you had forgotten because it's been so long). So… what I'm looking for, what I'm _asking_ for is… ideas. What do you think should happen on the date. How much romance should there be, how much humor, what kind of humor, is there anything in particular you'd like to see? If I use your idea, I'll be sure to credit you and dedicate the chapter to you if you'd like. But, _guys_… seriously. I NEED input on this. In the past when I asked for input, I would only get like one or two people sharing their actual thoughts on the matter. PLEASE GIVE ME FEEDBACK. Send me a message if you don't want to leave a review, I don't care. I would REALLY HATE to give you guys a shitty chapter after how long I've made you wait and all the build up for it. Okay? Sorry for my rant. I hope you can understand at least a little, I understand if you're upset with me. I really do feel bad for it. I don't like it when other authors make me wait forever for the next update, and I hate that I've done that to you guys. I'm sorry.

_Thank you so much for reading._

P.S. When I actually do finish the chapter, I'll replace this one. Obviously. I feel like an idiot for feeling like I needed to establish that._  
_


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